Michigan’s Jackson Hallum completed a hat trick at 3:13 of overtime as the No. 11 Wolverines completed a road sweep of No. 5 Boston University, 5-4 in overtime (photo: Michigan Athletics)
Michigan’s Jackson Hallum scored the game-tying goal with 7:20 remaining in regulation and then followed it up with the overtime game winner as the Wolverines took two road victories over No. 5 Boston University, 5-4.
In a back-and-forth game, Michigan took an early lead before BU rallied on first-period goals by Shane Lachance and Matt Coppini.
Michigan answered early in the second on Hallum’s first of the night to draw the game even at 2.
After the two teams traded goals, BU’s Devin Kaplan gave the Terriers the lead with 8:12 remaining only to be answered by Hallum 52 seconds later on the power play.
Hallum’s goal at 3:13 of the overtime marked the Wolverines first overtime victory since a 6-5 decision at Minnesota last March.
Cornell, an Ivy League team starting its season this weekend nearly a month after much of its competition, earned its second straight upset win over No. 6 North Dakota, earning a 5-3 victory on Saturday to sweep the weekend series in Ithaca, N.Y.
The Big Red overcame a 3-2 deficit after two periods with goals by Ryan Walsh, Tim Rego and Kyle Penney in the final stanza.
Cornell took the early lead with goals by Jake Kraft in the first and Jack O’Leary at 10:00 of the second.
North Dakota answered, and did so quickly, when Dylan James, Louis Jamernik and Sacha Boisvert all scored late in the second to give the visiting Fighting Hawks the lead after 40 minutes.
Ian Shane, who earned his 50th career win on Friday, made 25 stops to take the victory.
No. 2 Boston College 2, No. 10 St. Cloud State 1
Boston College was another team to sweep a key top 10 weekend series, overcoming an early 1-0 hole to win 2-1 on a Gabe Perreault goal.
After St. Cloud State’s Verner Miettinen gave the host Huskies the lead at 4:59 of the first period, Boston College’s Eamon Powell found the equalizer at 6:38 of the middle frame.
Perreault’s fifth goal of the young season at 3:23 of the third was the difference maker. Jacob Fowler earned the win making 25 saves.
Wisconsin 2, No. 19 Notre Dame 1
Wisconsin snapped a five-game losing streak in fashion, winning on the road at 19th-ranked Notre Dame, 2-1, behind a Simon Tassy game-winner and a 22-save effort by goaltender Tommy Scarfone.
All of the goals in the game came in the middle period. Wisconsin’s Owen Lindmark gave the Badgers the lead at 5:34 before Ryan Helliwell evened the game for the Fighting Irish.
Tassy notched his first goal of the season with just 35 seconds remaining in the second, a goal that stood up as the game winner.
From left, Jack Devine, Ben Muthersbaugh, Josh Kotai and Owen Say (photos: Denver Athletics/Union Athletics/Augustana Athletics/Notre Dame Athletics).
The first Hockey Commissioners Association monthly awards for men’s hockey have been announced for the month of October.
Denver senior forward Jack Devine is the player of the month, Union freshman forward Ben Muthersbaugh is rookie of the month, and Augustana sophomore Josh Kotai and Notre Dame junior Owen Say are co-goaltenders of the month.
Devine led the nation in scoring for the month of October. In six games, he had a line of 1-13-14, good for 2.33 PPG. He was a major reason that the Pioneers are off to a 6-0-0 start. He recorded multiple points in five of six games and now has 120 career points.
The top first-year player in the NCAA in October, Muthersbaugh was 6-7-13 in seven games. His six goals tie him for most among all NCAA players.
Kotai posted a 3-2-0 record, going 2-1 vs. nationally ranked schools. His numbers: a save percentage of .950 and a GAA of 1.63, while facing an average of 32 shots per game.
Say, a transfer from Mercyhurst, went 3-0-0 with eye-popping stats of .969 and 1.00 for the Irish.
From left, Casey O’Brien, Caroline Harvey, Emilia Kyrkkö and Carly Greene (photos: Wisconsin Athletics/St. Cloud State Athletics/Sacred Heart Athletics).
The first Hockey Commissioners Association monthly awards for women’s hockey have been announced for the combined months of September and October.
Wisconsin graduate forward Casey O’Brien and junior defenseman Caroline Harvey are co-players of the month, St. Cloud State freshman goalie Emila Kyrkkö is rookie of the month, and Sacred Heart senior goaltender Carly Greene is goalie of the month.
O’Brien led the NCAA with 7-17-24 and blueliner Harvey paired a plus-14 rating with a line of 5-14-19. Together, they helped the Badgers to a perfect 10-0-0 start.
Kyrkkö led the WCHA in GAA (0.97) and save percentage (.962) while facing multiple nationally ranked opponents.
In three complete games, Greene saw an average of 38 shots per game and emerged 3-0-0 with a 0.95 GAA and a save percentage of .975.
From left, Dave Gagnon, Dimitry Kebreau, Nicholas Grabko and Owen Bartoszkiewicz (Lindenwood photos: Don Adams Jr./Alaska photo: Eric Engman/Alaska Anchorage photo: Alaska Anchorage Athletics).
The 2024-25 season got off to a strong start for the NCAA’s five men’s Division I hockey programs and four players have earned monthly honors from NCAA Division I Independent Hockey.
All five schools enjoyed impressive road wins, eight cumulatively, with those victories coming at Notre Dame (2), Wisconsin, Merrimack, Lake Superior State, Miami, Northern Michigan and Augustana.
Lindenwood senior forward Dave Gagnon is player of the month, Alaska Anchorage freshman forward Dimitry Kebreau has been named rookie of the month, and Alaska graduate Nicholas Grabko and Lindenwood sophomore Owen Bartoszkiewicz are co-goalies of the month.
Gagnon went 4-3-7 in six games and played a key role in two wins, going 0-2-2 in a 4-2 win at Wisconsin and 2-1-3, including the unassisted game winner, in 4-2 win at Miami.
Kebreau had two goals in his first month of play, one at No. 1 Denver and one at Miami.
Grabko’s 2.37 GAA and .922 save percentage were keyed by a 37- save 1-0 shutout at nationally ranked Notre Dame.
Bartoszkiewicz had 34 saves in a 4-2 win at Wisconsin and 31 in a 4-2 win at Miami. Also had a season-high 42 saves in a 3-2 loss at Wisconsin. Compiled a 2.51 GAA and .918 save percentage on the month.
Cornell’s Ondrej Psenicka looks for a play against North Dakota’s Andrew Strathmann at Lynah Rink in Ithaca, N.Y., Friday night as the Big Red took a 4-1 win over the Fighting Hawks (photo: Caroline Sherman/Cornell Athletics).
Sullivan Mack recorded a goal and an assist and Ian Shane made 23 saves in goal as No. 9 Cornell opened its 2024-25 season with a 4-1 win over No. 6 North Dakota Friday night at Lynak Rink in Ithaca, N.Y.
Nick DeSantis, Tyler Catalano and Nicholas Wolfenberg also scored for the Big Red, and Jonathan Castagna chipped in a pair of assists.
For North Dakota, Dylan James netted the Fighting Hawks’ lone goal and TJ Semptimphelter and Hobie Hedquist combined to make 17 saves in goal. Semptimphelter started and made one save on four shots before Hedquist came in 12:32 into the first period with Cornell up 3-0.
Denver used five different goal scorers and goaltender Matt Davis stopped all 21 shots he faced in a 6-0 victory against Yale Bulldogs at Ingalls Rink in New Haven. Conn.
Eric Pohlkamp had two goals and one assist for his first three-point game with the Pioneers. Jake Fisher and Boston Buckberger each scored and added a helper in the contest and Sam Harris recorded a multi-point night as well with a pair of assists. Carter King and Rieger Lorenz also scored for DU.
Bulldogs goalie Jack Stark finished with 25 saves.
The Pioneers were playing their first-ever game at the historic Ingalls Rink on the Yale campus and were making just their second trip ever to New Haven, previously playing in a holiday tournament at the former downtown rink way back in 1980.
No. 2 Boston College 4, No. 10 St. Cloud State 1
Gabe Perreault scored two goals to lead Boston College to a 4-1 win over St. Cloud State at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in St. Cloud, Minn.
Michigan goaltender Logan Stein made 22 saves for the win.
Cole Eiserman had given BU the early 1-0 lead at 3:31 of the second period.
Mathieu Caron stopped 30 in net for the Terriers and also drew an assist on Eiserman’s goal.
No. 4 Minnesota 3, No. 18 Penn State 1
Jimmy Snuggerud scored twice and Nathan Airey made 21 saves in goal as Minnesota scored three unanswered goals and defeated Penn State 3-1 at 3M Arena at Mariucci in Minneapolis, Minn.
Reese Laubach tallied the lone goal for the Nittany Lions and goalie Arsenii Sergeev stopped 31 shots.
Bemidji State 1, No. 16 Minnesota State 0
Carter Randklev’s goal 12:35 into the second period was the game’s only offense as Bemidji State defeated Minnesota State 1-0 at the Sanford Center in Bemidji, Minn.
Mattias Sholl earned the shutout with a 24-save performance.
Harrison Scott and Charlie Russell each had a goal and two assists and Albin Boija stopped all 15 shots he faced as Maine blanked Merrimack 5-0 at Alfond Arena in Orono, Maine, to give head coach Ben Barr his 50th career win.
Thomas Freel added a goal and an assist for the Black Bears and Josh Nadeau and Lynden Breen also scored in the win.
Drew Montgomery had a goal and a helper for the Tigers, while Klavs Veinbergs added a goal and Kaidan Mbereko made 25 saves.
Brendan Gibbons and Clayton Cosentino each recorded a goal and an assist for Air Force, Nick Remissong had two assists, and goaltender Guy Blessing made 30 saves.
No. 12 Providence 6, New Hampshire 3
Ryan O’Reilly scored two goals and Andrew Centrella and Clint Levens each posted a goal and an assist as Providence doubled up UNH 6-3 at Schneider Arena in Providence, R.I.
Tanner Adams and Will Elger also scored for the Friars and goalie Philip Svedebäck made 23 saves in net.
Ryan Conmy scored two goals for the Wildcats and Liam Devlin also scored. In goal, Jared Whale and Rico DiMatteo combined to make 24 saves.
No. 15 Ohio State 9, Lake Superior State 3
Sam Deckhut scored twice with an assist to guide Ohio State past Lake Superior State by a 9-3 count at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
Nathan Lewis went for a goal and two assists and Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, Joe Dunlap, James Hong, Max Montes and Caden Brown all had a goal and an assist. Davis Burnside also scored for the Buckeyes.
In goal for OSU, Logan Terness turned aside 14 shots.
Reagan Milburn had a goal and two assists for the Lakers, Branden Piku a goal and an assist and Sasha Teleguine a goal as Rorke Applebee and Grant Riley combined to make 40 saves in goal.
No. 19 Notre Dame 3, Wisconsin 2
Cole Knuble’s goal at 2:11 of overtime gave Notre Dame a 3-2 win over Wisconsin from the Compton Family Ice Arena in South Bend, Ind.
Brennan Ali tied the game 2-2 for Notre Dame at 18:47 of the second period. Henry Nelson also scored for the Irish and Owen Say made 42 stops between the pipes.
Ryan Botterill and Owen Lindmark scored for the Badgers and goaltender Tommy Scarfone collected 21 saves.
No. 20 UMass Lowell 5, Holy Cross 4 (OT)
Jak Vaarwerk’s goal at 2:30 of overtime lifted UMass Lowell to a 5-4 win over Holy Cross from the Hart Recreation Center in Worcester, Mass.
Vaarwerk added an assist for a two-point night, Matt Crasa also had a goal and an assist, and Owen Cole, Libor Nemec and Chris Delaney also scored for the River Hawks.
Adrian takes on Utica this weekend to open its season. (Photo provided by Adrian Athletics)
Here we go. The curtain raises on another Division III hockey season, and there is plenty of action going on during the first weekend.
We got a few high profile matchups on tap, including St. Olaf battling St. Norbert and Utica taking on Adrian in a USCHO.com Top 15 matchup.
Without further delay, let the puck drop and the season begin.
Friday
Augsburg at Dubuque
The Auggies are always a contender and open the season on the road at a tournament in Dubuque.
Augsburg did lose their All-American goalie but a program like this one always finds a way to reload rather than rebuild. Cade Stibb is the top returning scoring threat for the Auggies, tallying seven goals and 12 assists last year.
Dubuque is in its second year as a program and should take steps forward. The Spartans return 13 players and have added a few transfers as well. Playing against Augsburg is always a tall order, but win or lose, the Spartans will gain a ton from this experience. Augsburg, 4-2
Friday and Saturday
Concordia (MN) at Concordia (WI)
Here’s one thing we do know about this matchup. Concordia is going to win. We just don’t know if it will be the Cobbers or the Falcons.
The Cobbers welcome back their top two scorers in Mason Plante and Isaac Henkemeyer-Howe and will lean on an experienced offensive group for success. The Falcons have plenty of experience on their side, with only three players lost to graduation. Among the returnees is Alex Ochitwa, who scored 11 goals and tallied 10 assists. I feel like this one could end with a split. Concordia (WI) 4-2; Concordia (MN) 4-3.
St. Scholastica at MSOE
The Saints were one of the better teams in the MIAC last season, winning 15 games, and bring back two of their top scorers in Nathan Adrian and Tristan Shewchuk. The big question mark for the Saints is at goal as Jack Bostedt has left a void.
The Raiders have plenty of talent back and spent part of their offseason in Latvia playing hockey. That kind of experience should prove valuable for a lot of reasons. Carson Jones is the top player back for MSOE, which looks to make an early-season statement.
This should be a fun two-game series to watch. MSOE, 3-2; St. Scholastica, 5-4
St. Olaf at St. Norbert
Don’t be surprised if you see this showdown again in March. These two teams both have the potential to play in the NCAA tournament.
St. Olaf could very well win the MIAC while St. Norbert could do the same in the NCHA. Nothing like getting tested on the opening weekend.
The Oles have 12 of their 15 top scoring threats from last season back. The fifth-ranked Green Knights have no shortage of talent either, led by the play of Liam Fraser, last year’s leading scorer.
A lot of goal could be scored this weekend. This series comes down to who makes plays on defense in the end. Let’s go with the upset in this one. St. Olaf, 4-3
Saturday
Bethel at St. Norbert
The Green Knights welcome in another MIAC contender as Bethel comes to town. St. Norbert lost only once at home last season and are aiming to close out the weekend on a high note. The Royals are coming off one of their best seasons in program history and will get a quick idea of where they stand heading into the new season. Should be a fun game to watch. St. Norbert, 3-2
Saint John’s at UW-River Falls
The Johnnies head out on the road to take an always tough River Falls squad. More than 70 percent of the scoring is back for the Falcons, with Jonny Meiers and Dylan Smith leading the way. The dup combined for 20 goals last season.
The Johnnies have great depth at goal with Jon Howe and Bailey Huber and it will be interesting to see how this one plays out. UW-River Falls, 3-2
Saturday and Sunday
Utica at Adrian
Does it get any better than Utica and Adrian facing off at the start of the year. The two teams play Saturday and Sunday
The Bulldogs come in ranked third in the nation. The Pioneers are fourth.
A year ago, these two teams matched up and one game ended in a scoreless tie while the other went Utica’s way in a 3-2 win.
Adrian gets home ice advantage this time and faces a Utica team that has a lot of depth and balance. But the Bulldogs have the same thing and return three players who accounted for 45 goals. This is a matchup worth watching for sure. Adrian, 3-2; Utica, 2-1
Hobart’s Luke Aquaro and teammates will be looking to continue their successful ways as they hunt a final NEHC title and third consecutive NCAA championship (Photo by Stan Godlewski-Trinity Athletics)
It is almost here and there is that feeling in the air that creates excitement around the start of a new season.
This year brings some significant changes from last year including: a new league, the MAC; new teams with Keene State and Misericordia joining the D-III party this year; new conference alignments that find all the former Independents playing with an opportunity to win a conference and shifts of perennial powers to new conferences like Geneseo from the SUNYAC to the UCHC. If you think this year is crazy wait until 25-26 but that would take all the excitement out of this year’s pursuit of conference glory and a national championship chase where current back-to-back champion Hobart is eyeing a three-peat.
So the end of the exhibition season is upon us and that means everything counts from here until March, 2025. Break out the team wear, the fan blogdom and let’s fill the “barns” with excitement for a season where, on Friday night, ever team is undefeated and harbors goals of victories and conference success. This is going to be great!
Friday, November 1, 2024
Wilkes v. (7) Geneseo
The Knights will host a tough opening night opponent when the Colonels face-off on Friday night. Expect this one to be fast-paced with a lot of chances for both teams with special teams ultimately deciding this one for the home team in a one-goal win – Geneseo, 4-3
Southern Maine v. (14) Endicott
The Huskies proved to be a very tough out in the second half of last season and coach Matt Pinchevsky will be looking to build on that to start the new season. Only problem is they are the road teams against a deep and skilled Gull squad that will not give up much. Late goal gives the home team a win on opening night – Endicott, 3-2
Oswego v. (1) Hobart
The Statesmen welcome one of the youngest Laker squads that has taken the ice in a while and the “Cooler Crazies” make sure the welcome is less than hospitable as the defending national champions get off to a fast start and take a comfortable win – Hobart, 4-1
University of New England v. (11) Plymouth State
The Panthers and Nor’easters have played some classic contests over the past few years and this year’s PSU squad has some serious firepower that will make life challenging for the home squad. Tough to keep the “Wills” (Redick and Pray) down and their scoring touch helps secure a win – PSU, 3-2
(7) Curry v. Massachusetts-Boston
The Colonels and Beacons have been long-time rivals and this year finds a couple of Beacon transfers wearing the purple and white on opening night. Shane Soderwall is among the best goaltenders in the country and he backstops a nice opening night road win – Curry, 4-2
Canton v. (15) Stevenson
The Mustangs find themselves in the top fifteen in the opening season poll and they play like a national contender on opening night with a convincing win fueled by a fast start in the first period. Power play is a key contributor for the Mustang offense – Stevenson, 5-2
Saturday, November 2, 2024
(11) Plymouth State v. Babson
The Panthers go back-to-back against quality opponents and the Beavers prove to be a tough foe on the second night where a late goal delivers a victory for Jamie Rice’s disciplined group. Four balanced lines are the difference – Babson, 3-2
Albertus Magnus v. Johnson & Wales
The Falcons are now part of the NEHC where J&W departed for the CNE. Regardless of the league affiliation, the contest is likely to be fast and physical with the visitors taking advantage of some odd-man rushes for a big win on the road – Albertus Magnus, 3-0
(4) Utica v. (3) Adrian
The Pioneers and Bulldogs have played a two-game series to open the season for several years. While former Adrian coach Adam Krug has moved on to the AHL, the rivalry will continue with some great hockey. See-saw affair that finds the visitor eking out a win in overtime – Utica, 4-3
(12) Skidmore v. Wentworth
The Thoroughbreds are certainly expected to be one of the premier teams in the east this season and they show off the skill and speed in a comfortable win over the Leopards with the power play providing a couple of goals for the final margin – Skidmore, 5-2
Southern New Hampshire v. Framingham State
The Penmen will look to get off to a fast start and goaltender Collin Berke will make sure the team has support to get the offense going. Kurt Watson and Ryan Pomposelli have multiple points in the win over a game Rams squad – SNHU, 4-2
(13) Cortland v. Alvernia
The Red Dragons enter the season as the defending SUNYAC champions and want to get a fast start to the season against the Golden Wolves. Too much firepower with Colby Seitz and Nate Berke leading on the scoresheet for the visitors – Cortland, 4-1
It does not matter if the games are non-conference affairs as a win is a win and everybody is playing for those as they find their game to start the campaign. Early season hardware adds some spice for teams in opening tournaments and like my good friend, scribe John “Jocko” Connolly always says to get things going – “Drop the Puck!”
For the second straight season, there are 1119 women rostered by NCAA DI women’s hockey programs this season. Players represent 37 US states, 11 Canadian provinces and 18 different countries – 14 in Europe and 4 in Asia.
This data was collected by individually surveying the posted rosters of each NCAA DI team.
The US is home to the majority of players in NEWHA and the WCHA, while the split between US and Canadian players is much closer to equal in the ECAC and Hockey East. American players makes up less than half the total of players in the AHA.
Minnesota leads the way with 202 players. Ontario is the top Canadian province with 209 women calling it home.
Of the 1119 women rostered this season, hail from. The top three states by number of skaters are Minnesota, Massachusetts (114) and New York (52). Minnesota-born players make up 18% of all NCAA players this season and are 49% of the women playing in the WCHA in 2024-25. Massachusetts-born players make up 31% of Hockey East players.
In all, women representing 37 states are currently playing NCAA DI hockey. NEWHA leads the way with 78% of their players hailing from the US, followed closely by the WCHA, with 72% of their players claiming America as their home.
A full third of the women playing DI women’s hockey this season hail from Canada – 363 of the 1119 skaters. Players from 11 of the Canadian provinces and territories are taking the ice this season. The ECAC has the most players who call Canada home with 137 – that’s 44% of the women who play for ECAC teams.
There are 75 players from countries outside North America, up 15 from last season. They make up 7% of the total players rostered this season. Eighteen countries are represented – three more than last season – with players from Poland, China and Slovenia joining D1 teams. Hockey East leads the way in total number of non-North American countries represented with 10, while the 21 non-North American players skating in the AHA are most among the conferences.
St Olaf won the league tournament last season and is hoping for a repeat. (Photo provided by St. Olaf athletics)
The MIAC never seems to disappoint when it comes to being competitive. The race for the regular-season championship and the five conference tourney spots up for grabs always seems to be a fight to the finish.
Last year, Augsburg held a two-point edge over Bethel for the regular-season title, but the Oles, who finished fifth in the standings, ended up winning the conference tournament championship.
You just never know how things are going to go. Here’s a look at each team heading into the new year.
Augsburg (15-9-2, 12-3-1)
One thing about Augsburg is that it’s always in the discussion for a league championship. This year shouldn’t be an exception for the Auggies, the reigning regular season champion.
Cade Stibbe will lead the way after finishing third on the team in scoring last season, tallying seven goals and 12 assists.
Landon Parker also ranked among the top five in scoring for the Auggies, finishing fourth with six goals and 12 assists.
Nick Catalano and Peyton Hanson will provide help offensively as well. Catalano scored eight goals and dished out four assists. Hanson recorded six goals and six assists.
Michael Ferrandino is also a key returning player after dishing out seven assists to go along with four goals.
The Auggies lost one of the top goalies in the nation in Samuel Vyletelka, and finding someone to fill that void will be key. Josh Koziol is the only goalie back with experience from last season as he appeared in five games for the Auggies.
Bethel (18-6-3, 11-3-2)
Coming off an impressive season, the Royals have the pieces in place to build on what they accomplished last year.
Seventeen players are back, along with 12 newcomers, two of which are transfers. Those transfers are Shane LeVelle from Lindenwood and Liam Hennessy from Rivier.
One of the top players back is Tyler Kostelecky, an All-American last year, while Austin Ryman returns as one of the top goaltenders in the conference. Kostelecky scored 13 goals and dished out 13 assists. Ryman started 15 games and gave up just 33 goals. He racked up 451 saves and won 11 games.
Bethel tied the record for wins in a season, and it’s 72.2 winning percentage is the best in school history. The Royals played in the MIAC championship game last year and are hungry to get back there and finish the job this time.
St. Scholastica (15-10-1, 8-7-1)
The Saints are ready to march into another season and take aim at contending for a MIAC crown.
Though they have lost three of their top five scorers, including scoring leader Fillimon Ledenkov, the cupboard isn’t bare for St. Scholastica.
Nathan Adrian ranked third in scoring and finished last season with seven goals and 13 assists. Tristan Shewchuk was fifth in scoring, racking up eight goals and 11 assists.
Jaco Seitz will provide plenty of help offensively as well, coming off a year where he scored six goals and dished out seven assists.
Brodie Girod tallied seven goals last season to go along with three assists and Hunter Hanson finished with six goals and four assists.
The Saints will need to find someone to fill the void at goaltender as well after losing Jack Bostedt. Elino Rissanen is the only one back at that position with any experience for the Saints as he appeared in one game.
Saint Mary’s (10-14-2, 8-7-1)
The Cardinals welcome back 18 players, including two all-conference picks, and that should put them in position to compete for a playoff spot again.
Colin Tushie and AJ Rushowski both earned All-MIAC honors last season. Tushie scored 10 goals and eight assists while Rushowski appeared in 15 games between the pipes, racking up 506 saves and winning six games.
Gabe Potyk and Warner Young also return for the Cardinals, who scored 64 goals while allowing 94.
There are 15 new additions to the team as well, including Jake Cameron, Cole Mickie, Liam McInnis, Tommy Wright and Jack Bayless.
When it’s all said and done this season, the Cardinals should be back in the mix for an upper half finish in the standings and a postseason berth.
St. Olaf (14-12-3, 7-7-2)
The Oles have become a regular contender in the conference lately and are the reigning conference tournament champions. They won their second crown in the last three seasons in 2024.
Don’t be surprised if the Oles are hoisting a trophy again as they bring back 21 players including 12 of their top 15 scoring threats.
Leading the way is All-American Connor Kalthoff, who scored 16 goals last season and also dished out 15 assists.
Cody Sherman is back as well and was the second-leading scorer for the Oles a year ago. He came through with seven goals and 13 assists.
Jonathan Panisa and Jonathan Young were also in the top five in scoring for the Oles, combining for 17 goals and 15 assists.
Joey Kennelly and Tyler Green are also among the key players back after finishing with a combined eight goals and 17 assists.
Finding someone to step in goal is key. The Oles are also in good shape in goal as Thomas Lalonde is back. He started 16 games and fashioned a 2.11 goals against average. Lalonde made 374 saves and won 10 games.
Saint John’s (9-12-4, 6-9-1)
All-conference selection Matt DeRosa is back to help lead the way for the Johnnies after scoring a team-best eight goals. He also tallied five assists and will be a captain this season.
Jack Wandmacher was the team leader in points last season. He scored seven goals and dished out seven assists. He’s a clutch player, too, scoring two game-winning goals during a successful freshman campaign.
Spencer Rurud dished out eight assists and Jack Bisson came through with seven assists. Cam Boche is also a playmaker, tallying nine assists last year. Mason Campbell was one of the top rookies two years ago and took a team-high 68 shots last season.
The Johnnies also have depth at goal with Bailey Huber and Jon Howe returning this year. Huber recorded a 2.78 goals against average and Howe won six games while fashioning a 2.32 goals against average.
The Johnnies missed the conference playoffs last year, ending a run of five consecutive appearances, and that will be added motivation for them going into this season.
Gustavus (11-12-2, 6-9-1)
The Gusties are looking to turn things around and certainly have a chance to do it with its top three scorers back from last season.
Drew Holt was the top scorer for the Gusties, tallying seven goals and 11 assists, while Drew Ellings finished with eight goals and eight assists.
Jack Suchy is also back after coming through with eight goals and seven assists a year ago.
Wilmer Svensson returns as well and finished fourth in scoring with seven goals and eight assists.
That experience should prove beneficial to the Gusties, who also welcome back one of their top goalies in Marko Belak. He started nine of the 14 games he appeared in and fashioned a 3.08 goals against average.
Concordia (10-12-3, 5-9-2)
The Cobbers should have a shot at a winning season as their top two scorers return. Mason Plante led the team with 11 goals and 12 assists while Isaac Henkemeyer-Howe also scored 11 goals to go along with his 10 assists. The duo tied for the team-lead in goals last season.
Joe Harguindeguy also returns and tied for the team lead in assists (14). He also scored three goals.
Hunter Olson will provide a boost offensively, too, after coming through with eight goals and seven assists. Hanson O’Leary is a player to watch as well after tallying six goals and seven assists. The Cobbers also have Carson Triggs for another year. He scored five goals and dished out seven assists last season.
Dan Couture and Brock Moroz are the two goalies on the roster with experience. Couture played in seven games while Moroz appeared in three.
Hamline (7-16-2, 3-12-1)
The Pipers are poised to improve with 26 players back this season, including the top three scorers. Brandon McNamara headlines the group as he was the leading scorer on the team last season. He came through with 10 goals and 11 assists.
Bailey Sommers ranked second on the team in scoring, tallying seven goals and nine assists, and Carson Simon recorded eight goals and seven assists.
Goalie Maximillian Haselbacher also returns and that’s big for Hamline. He started 17 games last season, recording two shutouts and racking up 500 saves.
The Royals have added a few transfers as well who should help bolster the team. Thomas Carls comes in from Augsburg and Nicolas Haviar is from Utica. Cal Levis III transfers in from Dubuque.
USCHO Edge hosts Jim Connelly, Dan Rubin, and Ed Trefzger look at money lines and over/under for five games (plus our “pizza money” game) on November 1, 2024:
Matt Harlow is back at Northeastern after a stint with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack (photo: Hartford Wolf Pack).
Matt Harlow has been named an assistant coach for the Northeastern men’s hockey team.
Harlow spent the past three seasons as the director of hockey operations for the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, assisting with all aspects of hockey operations including player personnel, player movement, and player contracts while also handling the day-to-day operations of the club.
“Matt Harlow will be a tremendous addition to our program. He has a ton of passion to coach, develop, and recruit,” said Northeastern head coach Jerry Keefe in a statement. “He is someone I’ve worked closely with in the past and knew this was the right fit for our program. We are all really excited to bring Matt back to Northeastern.”
Previously, Harlow served as the director of hockey operations at Northeastern from 2019 to 2021. Harlow helped guide the program to two winning seasons that included the program’s third straight Beanpot championship in Feb. 2020, and the program’s first Belpot championship.
Prior to coaching and scouting, Harlow played both collegiately and professionally. Harlow graduated from Brown in 2015, following a four-year playing career at the school. Over the course of 127 games at Brown, Harlow scored 36 points on 17 goals and 19 assists.
Following his NCAA career, Harlow played in 47 ECHL games spread across the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons with the Elmira Jackals, Manchester Monarchs, and Alaska Aces.
Miami battled to a split last weekend with Lindenwood (photo: Lexie Cunningham).
On the face of it, considering Miami hasn’t finished a season with a winning record since 2015, it would’ve been understandable for Anthony Noreen to want to make a big rebrand out of the RedHawks.
New coach, new team, new us.
But it quickly struck him, after being announced on April 1 as the program’s seventh head coach, that the bones of Miami’s structure were right for the job at hand.
Noreen, who was hired one day before the NCAA’s transfer portal opened, did bring in four college veteran players whom he had either previously coached with or against in his last job, behind the bench for the USHL’s Tri-City Storm. But as for Miami’s 17 returners from last year’s team that went 7-26-3, everyone was not only on board, but also highly determined.
“When I first got here, you don’t know what you’re going to do staff-wise and you don’t know who you’re going to keep player-wise,” Noreen said. “You look at the record from a distance and you start drawing conclusions, but I knew to some degree the previous staff, and that they were good hockey guys and good men and coaches.
“One of the most impressive things, and this speaks volumes about the university, (is that) every single player that was here who had eligibility to come back met with me. I set up shop at a local coffee shop and just said, ‘Hey, if you want to meet with me, this is where I’ll be and you’re welcome to come sit down with me,’ and every single guy, to a man, came and met with me and said, ‘Coach, if you’ll have me, I want to be back. Here’s what I think I can do, and here’s where I think I can be better.’
“They believe in this place, they love this place, and they want to be a part of it,” Noreen continued. “There’s something special here.”
Miami is off to a 3-3-2 start through the season’s opening month. The RedHawks were unbeaten (2-0-2) in their first four games, then lost three straight before earning a gutsy 4-1 win Saturday at home to Lindenwood. A Raimonds Vitolins shorthanded goal 11:31 into the third period and an empty-netter from Christophe Fillion — one of Noreen’s transfers, from Quinnipiac — made the final score not especially indicative of how the game went.
“We lost a hard-fought game on Friday night (4-2 to Lindenwood), and on Saturday, we had to kill nine minutes of penalties in the third period when we were up a goal,” Noreen said. “We blocked a ton of shots, scored a shorthanded goal and we were up 4-1 with less than 20 seconds left in the third period, and we had guys diving head-first to block shots. That’s what we want to be, and that was a really positive step, but we got right back to work this Monday.
“There’s been some good and some bad, and there have been nights where we felt we should’ve been better, and some nights we got what we deserved. In the early going, you evaluate every game and what really good players do is that they evaluate themselves. They identify what they like about their game, what we like about our game, where we can grow, where we can be better and how we can apply it. We’re making sure we live by a standard, and we have a standard of how we play and what we want to play to, and we don’t bend in that for anything or anybody.”
Miami is already coming up on the end of its nonconference slate, finishing it this weekend with a home series against Rensselaer. Then comes the meat grinder of an NCHC schedule, but Noreen isn’t looking past the Engineers. Next Friday’s road game against St. Cloud State is a while away still for a team in a situation like Miami’s this season.
“We have a ton of respect for our conference, and we know how difficult and challenging all those games are,” Noreen said, “but with a new staff, a new structure and all the things we have to worry about internally, we haven’t really talked past the next day’s practice.
“RPI has been really good so far this year, and we’ve pre-scouted them and stuff like that, but with our team, we have to focus on ourselves. We have to get our house in order, make sure we’re playing within our structure and the right way. That’s what we have to be focused on, while also telling the guys, ‘Hey, these are the major tendencies you’ll need to be aware of going into this series,’ but let’s get our internal stuff right.
“I think you’ve got to narrow the focus, especially with a totally new staff, new lines, new teammates and sometimes when you focus on too many things, it muddies the water a little bit,” Noreen continued. “You don’t want to be the master of none. You want to make sure that the things that are really important to us and the things that matter the most, let’s get those in place.”
Plymouth State forward Will Redick leads a potent Panther offense looking to extend their streak of MASCAC championships (Photo by Plymouth State Athletics
Plymouth State has ruled the roost in MASCAC hockey for several years in a row and in their final season in the conference face new challengers in Anna Maria and Rivier who now make the conference a 10-team league for the upcoming season. The former Independents will bring a lot of enthusiasm to their first season competing in a conference with a championship and national tournament opportunity on the line.
With many teams shifting to the Little East conference in the 2025-26 season, this year presents a unique opportunity to win the MASCAC in its largest ice hockey representation and the ten teams battling for bragging rights.
The Favorites
The Panthers bring a lot of offensive firepower to the ice with Connor Tait, Will Redick and Will Pray lead a deep group of forwards who are well equipped for providing goals in any and every situation on the ice. Colin Tracy is back as captain to lead from the blueline as a troika of goaltenders look to fill the crease vacated by Kalle Andersson. Coach Craig Russell saw the Panthers earn their first ever NCAA tournament win last season over Cortland in the first round. This year’s roster will be looking to build on that success starting with another MASCAC championship.
Anna Maria joins MASCAC for the 2024-25 season and brings a history of playing repeat champion Plymouth State very tight having won the last time the teams faced each other as non-conference opponents. Last year’s young roster will need to continue their development including goaltender Matthew Hennessey and forwards Matthew Byrne, Max Wennerberg and Brandon Della Paolera. Coach David McCauley has built a team that plays fast and physical which will keep them near the top of the MASCAC standings.
The Dark Horses
Fitchburg State under Dean Fuller’s tutelage always seems to be in the hunt for the conference title and this year should be no different with a strong nucleus of players returning for the Falcons. Goaltending will be strong with Max Macchioni and Frederick Soderberg both demonstrating the ability to steal wins for their team. Up front there is depth and balance showcased by forwards Michael Imala, Toivo Kramer, Kristopher Zapata and Oliver Cookson. If the blueline can find consistency from its younger players, the Falcons will be a factor.
Massachusetts-Dartmouth graduated a number of key contributors in each phase of the game. Goaltender Michael Davidson, defenseman Jake Maynard and forward Michael Perrone have all moved on from the Corsairs leaving ample opportunities for younger and new players to step up. Coach Erik Noack always has a roster with some exceptional talent and this year Collin Patterson and Tyler Stewart will be looked to for more production above and beyond their strong first-year seasons. If goaltending is established early in the season, the Corsairs will be a threat.
Players to watch
Anna Maria: Matthew Hennessey – goaltender; Brandon Della Paolera – forward
Fitchburg State: Michael Imala – forward; Toivo Kramer – forward
MCLA Cade Herrera – forward; Charlie Addessa – forward
Plymouth State: Will Pray – forward; Will Redick – forward
Rivier: Cody Rumsey – forward; Jon Tavella – forward
Salem State: Zach Dill – forward; Keagan O’Donoghue – forward
Westfield State: Cooper Board – forward; Christopher Miraldo – forward
Worcester State: Brigham Neuhold – forward; Jakub Kubik – goaltender
USCHO Predicted finish
Plymouth State
Anna Maria
Fitchburg State
Massachusetts-Dartmouth
Westfield State
Rivier
Worcester State
Framingham State
Salem State
MCLA
While Keene State will be part of the Little East next season, their inaugural season in D-III will see them play a number of MASCAC schools including Westfield State and Massachusetts-Dartmouth twice in November, Fitchburg State with a game in December and in January, 2025 and Worcester State in February, 2025.
Tynan Ewart has been a bright spot on the back end this season for NMU (photo: Northern Michigan Athletics).
For Northern Michigan, this season is about the process, not results.
Maybe that sounds like a tired sports cliche, but considering this team had to refresh basically its entire coaching staff and roster in the span of five months, it’s a reasonable expectation.
Last weekend’s series against Arizona State is a case in point: The Wildcats, who are 1-5 overall, were swept by the Sun Devils at home, 3-1 and 2-0. Despite being massively outshot each time (40-17 and 38-22, respectively) both were tie games heading into the third period.
“We’re going to experience some growing pains because of how new our team is and how young our team is,” NMU coach Dave Shyiak said. “So that’s going to take a little bit of time, but we’ve seen progress. We like where we’re at as a team in terms of workload and culture. Obviously, you’d like to win a few games along the way, but we’re holding our heads high right now.”
Shyiak was brought in to be the head coach at his alma mater in June, just a few weeks after former head coach Grant Potulny stepped down to accept a head coaching position with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack.
The Wildcats were already set to see some major roster shakeup, but the coaching change meant that just four players stuck around–sophomore forward Tanner Latsch, junior defenseman Jakob Peterson, junior forward Zach Michaelis and sophomore forward Brendan Poshak. Latsch, who played in just eight games last season before a season-ending injury, was named team captain before the start of the season while Peterson, a Marquette native, was named an alternate captain.
“Well, the game is continuity,” Shyiak said. “Obviously, we’ve got only four guys from last year’s team. Until this season Tanner had only played eight games in college hockey, and JP was used limitedly. But what they do bring is a great attitude, team-first mentality. They were voted captains by our guys, and they’re leading this group the right way.
“They know the culture that we want to build here. It’s great to have guys that were around last year, and who can talk to them about Marquette and about our program and lead us the right way, and I think they’ve been doing a great job of that.”
As for the rest of the roster, 24 players are new to the Upper Peninsula. Shyiak had a limited amount of time to find players, and the resulting roster is a combination of freshmen and Division 1 and Division 3 transfers.
“Some of these guys are getting more minutes than they’ve ever had in their careers at the collegiate level, and some guys are still making the transition from junior hockey here. So we’re still kind of identifying our line combinations, and our ‘D’ pairings are getting to what we want, but that’s all going to take a little bit of time,” Shyiak said.
One player new to Marquette who is seeing plenty of playing time is goaltender Ryan Ouellette, who played two seasons at Niagara after a freshman year at NCAA D-III Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Ouellette has started five of NMU’s six games this season and has a .941 save percentage.
“He’s stepped in right away and has performed very, very well. He’s given us a chance in the games. He’s kept it tight when he’s needed to keep it tight. Obviously, he’s playing very well for us now,” Shyiak said. “You know, we’ve got to do a little bit better job in front of him, creating a little bit more offense to help him along the way too. We got to bring our shot count down. And that’s about more about our breakouts and taking care of the puck.”
After a 1-5 start against nonconference opponents (the Wildcats were swept at Colorado College then split with Alaska Anchorage at home in the two weekends before the ASU series) NMU starts off CCHA play with the biggest series on their calendar, a home-and-home with archrival Michigan Tech. The Wildcats actually played the Huskies once already this season, an exhibition game that finished as a 4-3 win for Tech in Houghton. Those 24 newcomers got a small taste of what Shyiak calls the best rivalry in college hockey back on Oct. 4, but the games for conference points obviously mean more.
“We are getting better, so let’s learn from that. Don’t worry about what happened (in our past six games). Our focus is for Friday night here against our biggest rival. We’ve got to take another step forward and continue to get better,” Shyiak said. “We’ve also got to find a way to win a hockey game. Our focus is on getting better against a great opponent, Michigan Tech. Obviously, they’ve been to the NCAAs three years in a row. I consider them one of the top teams in the CCHA.
“So the matchup is going to be good, it’s going to be heavy, it’s going to be fast, it’s going to be exciting for everybody, but let’s focus on getting ourselves better.”
Plattsburgh goaltenders Eli Shiller and Jacob Hearne backstop a strong Cardinal squad looking to re-claim the SUNYAC title (Photo by Gabe Pickens)
SUNYAC has also been impacted by conference re-alignment as the long-expected adoption of SUNY-Canton to the league was offset by the departures of Brockport and Geneseo to the UCHC for the 2024-25 season. So, the former nine-team league will play as an eight-team conference moving ahead with travel partners that will better facilitate travel and inter-conference play this season.
The Favorites
Plattsburgh lost the title last season despite a strong roster that featured key players that played well in a style built for playoff hockey. Despite losing to Cortland, the Cardinals return a terrific line-up that features depth in goal with Jacob Hearne and Eli Shiller. The defense is mobile and provides offense with Jack Ring and Spencer Bellina. The forward group lost some key producers but showed balance last year with Luk Jirousek, Tio D’Addario, Joshua Belgrave and Ryan Bonfield expected to have continued success on the scoresheet. Coach Steve Moffat’s group has great leadership and work ethic and are looking for more than the conference title this season.
Cortland broke through for their first conference title last year before bowing out in the first round of the NCAA tournament against Plymouth State. This year’s edition of the Red Dragons features some key ingredients from last year’s winning recipe including the defensive duo of Nick Serio and Evan Beaudry, forwards, Nick Settimo, Colby Seitz, Nate Berke and Cody Hildreth and a goaltending troika where competition will determine who mans the blue paint for Cortland this season amongst junior Ronan Mobley, sophomore Hunter Hein, and freshman Shane Shelest. Coach Joe Cardarelli and his staff want teams to have a hard time playing against the Red Dragons and when they are successful in that 200-foot game, they win and will be a factor come tournament time.
The Dark Horses
Oswego has been a perennial competitor for the SUNYAC crown and this year’s edition of the Lakers will rely on a very young roster that includes sixteen freshmen that will need to adjust and mature at the college hockey level quickly. Key to the maturation process will be the leadership and production of several returning players including Andrew Harley, Daniel Colabufo and Matt McQuade as well as the goaltending of junior Brandon Milberg. The schedule for the Lakers does not start out easy but if this group can find their game quickly, coach Ed Gosek will once again see Oswego competing for the SUNYAC title and more.
Buffalo State may be ready to shed the dark horse label this season with a talented roster looking to compete at the top of the standings. Goaltender Marcus Cumberbatch will backstop the Bengals with a strong supporting cast upfront including forwards Joe Glamos, Conor Bizal, Vadim Kiriakov, and transfer Nick Stuckless (Skidmore). Coach Steve Murphy has the opportunity to jump start the season as the Bengals host their own tournament to open the season with St. Anselm, Misericordia and Brockport as the competition for early season hardware.
Players to watch
Buffalo State: Marcus Cumberworth – goaltender; Joe Glamos – forward
Canton: Evan Pringle – forward; Niko Schoner – forward
Oswego: Daniel Colabufo – forward; Andrew Harley – forward
Plattsburgh: Tio D’Addario – forward; Jack Ring – defense
Potsdam: Mason Hoehn – forward; Ryan Mahlmeister – forward
USCHO predicted finish
Plattsburgh
Oswego
Cortland
Buffalo State
Fredonia
Morrisville
Canton
Potsdam
Opening weekend will see some great non-conference matchups including Plattsburgh traveling to Castleton, Oswego visiting Hobart and then hosting Elmira, and Cortland facing off with Lebanon Valley.
The St. Norbert Green Knights are once again among the teams to beat in the NCHA and are poised to contend nationally as well. (Photo provided by St. Norbert Athletics)
By Brian Lester
No question the NCHA is a pretty strong hockey conference, especially with two of the nation’s best teams in it.
Reigning league champion Adrian leads starts the year at No. 3 nationally in the USCHO.com poll while St. Norbert is ranked fifth and projected to be the Bulldogs’ biggest challenger to a title. The Green Knights and Bulldogs are tied for first in the NCHA’s preseason poll.
It will be a surprise if anyone but those two are playing for the NCHA crown later this season, but teams like Trine and Aurora could prove to be surprise contenders in a league that seems to get better every year.
No matter where a team stands in the conference, an ‘any given night’ mentality’ applies and teams have to be ready to be at their best or get beat. A record might look good on paper but guarantees nothing on game day.
The Adrian Bulldogs are the reigning league champ and tied for first in the preseason NCHA poll. (Photo provided by Adrian Athletics)
Adrian (24-7-1, 16-2)
A new era begins for the Bulldogs, who are now under the direction of first-year head coach Adam Phillips. Phillips takes over for Adam Krug – he left to coach in the AHL – and is no stranger to the program, serving as an assistant in the past, including during the national championship season at Adrian in 2022.
This is a team with no shortage of experience as 20 players return for a program coming off a Frozen Four trip.
Yes, the top three scorers are gone, but Bradley Somers is back after tallying 13 goals and 25 assists. Jacob Suede is also back, scoring 12 goals and dishing out 22 assists last year.
Matt Couto will provide plenty of help to the offense as well. He dished out 16 assists a year ago. And it never hurts to have a goalie with experience. Dershahn Stewart started 28 games and gave up only 49 goals. He made more than 700 saves.
Adrian is going to get every team’s best shot. The best teams always do. But these Bulldogs are poised to contend for a conference and national title this season.
St Norbert (23-7, 15-3)
The Green Knights are coming off a season where they finished as the runner-up in the conference and played in the NCAA tournament.
Expectations are always high for one of the top programs in Division III hockey, and this year is no exception.
Liam Fraser will help pave the way for a special year as he was the team’s second-leading scorer last season. A first-team all-conference selection last season, he tallied 17 goals and 27 assists. Logan Dombrowsky had an impressive freshman campaign with the Green Knights, scoring 14 goals and recording 23 assists. In fact, he was the NCHA’s Freshman of the Year.
T.J. Koufis and captain Carter Hottman are also back in the fold, meaning the Green Knights have four of their top five scoring threats back from last season. Koufis finished with six goals and 20 assists while Hottman racked up 10 goals and 10 assists. Dayton Deics, a returning first-team all-league pick, finished with three goals and 15 assists.
St Norbert should be solid in goal as well with Hunter Garvey returning. He played in 23 games and made 517 saves while recording a goals against average of just 1.90.
With the experience and talent the Green Knights have on their roster, it won’t be a surprise at all if they win the NCHA and contend for a national title as well.
Trine (20-8, 13-5)
No one can overlook Trine when it comes to discussing the NCHA title race. The Thunder bring back a wealth of experience. Sean Henry is among the key returnees after scoring five goals and dishing out 12 assists as one of the top defenders in the conference.
Like Henry, Sam Antenucci was an all-conference pick and led the team in points (34) and goals (15). He ranked second on the team in assists.
Michael DiPietra was an all-freshman team selection after tallying seven goals and eight assists, and should be even better this year with more experience under his belt.
And Josh Wright showed a lot of promise despite missing eight games due to injury. He finished with 17 points and should be even more productive this year.
Trine also has its top two goalies back as well in Kyle Kozma and Christian Wong-Ramos. Kozma played in 23 games and had a 2.33 goals against average.
The addition of Ronnie Petrucci gives Trine even more depth in goal. He played for the Little Flyers in Philadelphia, and last season, he stopped 92 percent of the shots he faced and recorded three shutouts.
Aurora (15-12-1, 12-6)
Sixteen players are back for the Spartans. That group includes leading scorer Chase Broda, who tallied 12 goals and 15 assists on his way to helping Aurora finish fourth in the league. His presence, along with the return of Hassan Akl and Jakson Kirk, who ranked second and third on the team in scoring, should have Aurora’s offense running smoothly.
Akl scored five goals while handing out a team-leading 18 assists and Kirk racked up a team-best 15 goals to go along with seven assists.
Aurora scored 93 goals last season as a team. The defense should be in good shape as well with the top two goaltenders back.
JaCob Mucitelli started 20 games and fashioned a 2.77 goals against average. Matt O’Donnell earned six starts and had a goals against average under three as well (2.97). Both stopped more than 90 percent of the shots they faced.
Newcomers Landry Schmuck, Simon Diaz and Mathis Bedard will provide added depth for the Spartans.
MSOE (14-11-2, 8-9-1)
Carson Jones leads the way for the Raiders, who hope to be one of the top teams in the conference. Jones was an all-conference pick as a sophomore. Jones stuck for 12 goals and also dished out 20 assists. Casey Roepke was an all-rookie pick last year and tallied 16 assists. Then there’s Seth Bernard, who finished with 15 goals and 12 assists while tying for the most shorthanded goals in the nation last season.
The Raiders gained valuable experience over the summer, taking a trip to Latvia and facing the country’s world junior team as well as a pro team out of Finland. MSOE also took on Castleton State. There’s no question the chance to play overseas should pay dividends for the Raiders heading into a new season.
A total of 23 players return for MSOE, as well as six newcomers. Included in that group is Nikolai Charchenko from Colorado College and Ethan Mann, a former Wisconsin commit.
Concordia (8-19, 6-12)
With 22 players back and only three players lost to graduation from last year’s squad, hopes are high for the Falcons going into a new season.
Alex Ochitwa will help lead the way after scoring the most goals last season, punching in 11. He also dished out 10 assists as he tied for the team lead in points.
Riley Klugerman shared team scoring honors with 21 points, with most of his impact being made as a playmaker. Klugerman rang up 18 assists to go along with his three goals. The duo of Ochitwa and Kluerman should make Concordia a tough team to deal with night in and night out.
The Falcons also welcome back their goalie in Gabe Rosek, who racked up 820 saves last season.
Connor Van Weelie, Jack Guvenal and Levi Carter, all from Canada, headline a strong cast of newcomers who should make an immediate impact for the program.
Concordia did drop its final five games of last season but a strong start early in the season will go a long way in setting the tone for success this year.
Marian (9-17-1, 5-12-1)
Jaymes Knee is among the key returning players for the Sabres, finishing second on the team in goals (7) and points (18) despite playing in only 20 games. If he’s healthy all season, he could very well end up as the team’s top scoring threat.
Daunte Fortner is also back after leading the team in assists (13) a year ago, and like Knee, he’s a senior.
The other key returning player to watch is Andreal Proctor-Ramirez, who started five games in goal last season and made 142 saves. The sophomore stopped 91 percent of the shots he faced, shaking off an injury he suffered in game two of the season to get back on the ice by February.
Several newcomers should help Marian’s cause as well, including Dayne Tews, who played three years with the Grande Prairie Storm and scored 11 goals and dished out 14 assists in his final 25 games there. Eemil Rautio and Brady Brenner are new additions to watch as well.
Lake Forest (7-18, 4-14)
There are 26 players back for the Foresters, including the team’s leading scorer from last season in Chase Freiermuth, who finished his season with 14 goals and 12 assists. His presence on the ice will play a huge role in helping Lake Forest take aim at a winning season.
Colin Bella is coming off an impressive freshman campaign, earning a spot on the all-freshman team in the conference. Those are among 10 players who finished in double figures in points last season. Matteas Derraugh is also returning for the Foresters after dishing out 12 assists last year. He also scored two goals. The team leader in assists also returns in Logan Kittleson, who finished last season with 18 to go along with six goals.
Lake Forest has the experience back to take significant steps forward from an offensive standpoint and there is depth at the goalie position, with Bobby McCloskey, Kohl Reddy and Dylan Kruss all seeing valuable time on the ice last season. McCloskey played the most, logging more than 700 minutes, and earning four wins.
Dubuque (3-19, 3-15)
The Spartans begin their second year as a program. Along with 13 returning players, they have added transfers and freshmen who should make an impact as well.
Chris Curr returns at goal and his in his fifth year as a college athlete. Josh King is also in his fifth year while Max Messier is a senior.
Messier and King were the top scoring threats for the Spartans, with Messier leaving the team with four goals and five assists.
King came through with a team-best five goals and three assists.
Curr started 10 games in goal and stopped nearly 92 percent of the shots he faced while earning three wins.
The roster will have no shortage of new faces as 21 have joined the team. Two of the key newcomers are Nikita Borodeyenko from Merrimack) and Layten Liffrig. Zach Burfoot should be an impact player as well. Borodeyenko played two seasons at Merrimack and appeared in 20 games there.
With a year of experience, the Spartans should be an improved team this season.
Lawrence (8-17-2, 6-10-2)
Ryan Orr is now the head coach at Lawrence, taking over for Brett Wall, who landed a job the Janesville Jets of the NAHL.
He’s familiar with the league since he used to coach at Marian and the defensive side of the ice should be strong with goalie Nolan Mahaffey back. He started 18 games and won seven games while fashioning a 3.39 goals against average. Jayden Jensen tallied four goals and nine assists as a defenseman last year and will be looked upon to help lead the way again this season.
Ethan Beaumont returns, which is good news for the Vikings. He was the leading scorer a year ago, finding the back of the net six times and dishing out 14 assists.
Cory Checco and Jack Michels are fifth-year seniors and that experience is big for a team looking to take steps forward. Michels came through with nine goals and nine assists, finishing third in scoring on the team, while Checco racked up seven goals to go along with 10 assists. He was fifth on the team in scoring.
Ayrton Martino has collected two goals and two assists for four points this season for Clarkson (photo: Clarkson Athletics).
The average college hockey fan wouldn’t view Jean-Francois Houle’s career path for a potential return to his alma mater.
The former Clarkson scoring wizard in the 1990s returned to the Golden Knights after ending his on-ice career but jumped on an arc within earshot of a bench boss job within the NHL. He spent five years in the QMJHL before ascending to the AHL’s Laval Rocket, who rewarded him in May with a contract extension for the main development pipeline to one of hockey’s tent-pole franchises.
Pointing him back to Potsdam for a head coaching vacancy at Clarkson was nothing short of a college hockey coup, but three weeks after Montreal confirmed his status for the Rocket, he mutually parted ways to become head coach of the Golden Knights.
Almost immediately, a smooth coaching change pointed a rebooting team towards its upwards swing, to which hope and expectation, those fickle attributes merged and melded more often at Clarkson than most places, are once again aligning after tasting success in the first seven games.
“We’re playing with confidence right now,” said Houle of his team, which swept Michigan Tech this past weekend to improve to 5-2 on the year. “Ethan Langenegger made some big saves for us over the weekend. It was hard to play up [on the Upper Peninsula], but I think our players responded pretty well. There were a lot of good teaching moments; we had some penalty trouble, so our penalty kill and special teams, the power play, were excellent, but we had good teaching moments for our club.”
Clarkson entered this season by turning the corner from the unexpected downswing that began in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. The two-time NCAA tournament participants won a Whitelaw Cup as ECAC’s postseason champion in 2019, but a third-straight appearance on the national stage unexpectedly ended when the pandemic broke out during the 2020 postseason. Instantaneously, a 23-win team and second place finisher behind No. 1 Cornell lost its shot at a national championship, after which the 2020-2021 team was eliminated from the four-team when the novel coronavirus canceled its participation.
The 2021-22 team returned to form by winning 21 games, but relative weaknesses surrounding ECAC’s return to a full 12-team complement sent the second place Golden Knights onto the wrong side of the Pairwise Rankings’ bubble when they lost their semifinal matchup to a Harvard team that later knocked them out of the tournament with a 3-2 win in the conference championship game.
None of that signaled a warning to Clarkson that the good times atop the league fast approached their end, but the 16-win team from 2022-23 coupled with a fifth place finish last year to create a cyclical event perceptively in line with a league featuring rising teams at Dartmouth, which finished one point ahead of the Golden Knights for fourth place, and Colgate, which nipped one point behind second place Cornell.
Both would have finished tied or within one game of Clarkson under older scoring rules, which likewise would have moved the Big Red within four points – or one weekend’s work – of sending the fifth-place team into second.
Nothing rocked the proverbial boat on the program, and even changing coaches over this offseason appeared ridiculously smooth after Jones left to create a succession plan with retiring Cornell head coach Mike Schafer. Few players left for greener pastures in the transfer portal, and arrivals from Langenegger, Ryan Bottrill, Garrett Dahm and Ray Fust bolstered an incoming recruiting class already identified for particular systems.
“It was smooth because ‘Jonesy’ went to his alma mater while I went to my alma mater,” Houle noted. “I’ve known him and the team through their success over the past five or six years, so there wasn’t much turnover. The two assistants that were here – Chris Brooks and Cory Scheider – have been awesome. They’ve been really good in retaining the players that were here and retaining some of the recruits that we had, so that made it a smoother transition for me, and it’s just been good to be back in this environment, trying to teach some young players how to be good players and good citizens.”
The whole process somehow blended continuity into change, and Clarkson launched into its season with a 2-2 start after splitting home wins over Canisius and Niagara with losses to RIT and Notre Dame. None of those games successfully produced the full 60-minute effort desired by the coaching staff, but the first period leads against Canisius and Notre Dame contrasted mightily with the closeout issues against RIT and the slow start against Niagara.
In particular, the Knights needed to gel, and the first road trip to Vermont illustrated a massive step forward when the defense blocked 17 shots in a 3-1 comeback win that spilled into last weekend’s sweep over Michigan Tech. A return of sorts for Langenegger, who played at Lake Superior State before moving east, Clarkson stormed forward against the Huskies by gaining goals from freshmen Ty Brassington and Jack Sparkes in a 4-1 victory.
One night later, Clarkson earned its first weekend road sweep over the same opponent in four years when it earned a 2-1 overtime winner with 17 seconds remaining in the extra period.
“It’s kind of normal to have a little bit of a slow start on the road,” Houle emphasized. “But once you find your feet, you start playing better as the second and third periods go on. You get more comfortable, and the details of the game get better as the game goes on. We had the opposite against Notre Dame at Clarkson where we lost in the third, so this is all part of great teaching moments for our players, win or lose. I believe you need those teaching moments for your team to progress.”
It’s through those lenses that Clarkson is starting to knock on its return to the national polls. Thirty-one vote points were good enough to place the Golden Knights 23rd among Division I programs, and the virtual tie with Omaha is pushing them to a place that hasn’t been seen since the start of the 2022-23 season. The No. 18 team at the start of the year, two straight losses to Hockey East teams dropped the Golden Knights out of the polls, but reasons are increasingly putting them on the map for national voters as ECAC play looms in the middle of November.
“There’s a lot of parity,” said Houle. “The league, on any given night, anybody can win. At the end of the day, it’s played on the ice, so when the puck drops, it’s the team that works the hardest that will probably win. For me, competing for the full 60 minutes is very, very important.
“It’s the emphasis that we put on our players right now because the ECAC is a tough league to play in. You have to be ready because one little mistake or a mental mistake, could end up in the back of your net.”
Clarkson hosts Alaska for two games this weekend at Cheel Arena before Stonehill makes a one-game trek to the North Country on Nov. 9 ahead of the first weekend of ECAC play at Rensselaer and Union’s Capital District arenas.
Maine head coach Ben Barr joins hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger to talk Black Bears hockey through the early part of the season, transfer portal, recruiting, factors toward recent success, CHL eligibility, pending legislation, rule changes, and series this coming weekend vs. Merrimack.
Tyler Wallace is averaging a point per game through six games this season with Niagara (photo: Niagara Athletics).
Parity continues to reign in Atlantic Hockey America.
Ask any coach about the league and they’ll tell you one of its strengths is that the margin between the top and bottom is small.
To date, there have been six conference series, with four resulting in splits, and two more that featured one team getting four of the six points.
One of the teams that managed four is Niagara, which battled Robert Morris last weekend in a home-and-home series.
The Purple Eagles won at RMU, 7-3 but settled for a 4-4 tie at Dwyer Arena, with the Colonials picking up the extra point in the shootout.
“They were good games,” said Niagara coach Jason Lammers. “We didn’t get home (from Robert Morris) until three in the morning (on Saturday), and I was impressed with the way we responded.”
There’s anticipation and excitement in the air at Niagara, a feeling that the Purple Eagles are ready to return to the top of the conference.
“We think we’re building something special,” said Lammers. “COVID really hurt us, [and] I feel like we lost two years of progress. But we have tremendous support from the university (including) $4.5 million in improvements to our rink.”
Niagara has also done well with recruiting. There are three NHL draft picks in Atlantic Hockey America, and two are on the Purple Eagles roster: defenseman Braden Doyle, a graduate transfer from Northeastern (a 2019 sixth-round pick by Los Angeles) and rookie Trevor Hoskin (a 2024 fourth-round pick by Calgary).
Hoskin was a late bloomer who found his way to Niagara after scoring 100 points in 52 games for Cobourg (OJHL). He’s currently third on the team in scoring with three goals and four assists in six games.
“He committed in November, ” said Lammers. “He had some connections to some of our players. We’re all about building connections and he felt Niagara was a good fit for that.”
Also on the roster are three players from Latvia: rookies Deivs Rolovs (goalie) and Rainers Darzins (forward) as well as junior forward Glebs Prohorenkovs. Rolovs and Darzins played for Latvia at last year’s World Juniors tournament.
“We’ve also got players from Norway and Japan as well as guys that speak French,” said Lammers. “It’s an eclectic group that learns from each other. It’s important for us in developing better players and men.”
Niagara lost nine players to the transfer portal at the end of last season, but brought in six new ones, including brothers Ross and Brett Roloson from Lake Superior State. It was a package deal that also included their father, former NHL all-star goalie Dwayne Roloson. He recently came on board as the director of hockey development for the Purple Eagles.
“We’re good friends through (UMass) Lowell,” said Lammers, who was an associate head coach for the Riverhawks from 2011 to 2015. Roloson was an All-American at UMass Lowell in 1993-94.
“We had the chance to take both boys, it was a no-brainer.”
Niagara hosts Rochester Institute of Technology tonight before taking on Mercyhurst in a home-and-home series this weekend.
“I like midweek games,” said Lammers. “It works well with local teams. I think it’s better for fans. I’d support more of an established deal where there’d be games on Wednesdays and Saturdays instead of usually just playing on weekends. People are busy and can’t always spend their weekends at the rink. I think we’d get more hockey fans that way.”
Stevenson’s Liam McCanney, returns to help the Mustangs pursue a MAC conference title and NCAA bid (photo: Sabrina Moran/SKM Photography).
The MAC was largely played as a subset to the UCHC schedule in recent years with just a handful of teams competing in both conferences and all were dependent upon winning the UCHC for a shot on the national tournament stage. As we enter the 2024-25 season, the re-aligned MAC finds seven teams moving over from the UCHC and the addition of first-year program, Misericordia to make up the eight-team conference that will compete for a title and auto-bid to the NCAA tournament.
Arcadia announced new head coach Ryan Heickert last spring. Heickert brings experience from Bryn Athyn as well as Neumann who will be a familiar opponent this season. Misericordia will enter the D-III ranks this season under the leadership of head coach Kevin Cole.
The Favorites
Stevenson has been on the brink of championship hockey in recent UCHC seasons but were unable to topple Utica in championship games. This season, coach Dominick Dawes will have the team very focused on translating their past MAC success into a title that puts them on the national stage. Forward Liam McCanney leads a deep group of forwards that now includes transfers Dylan Florit (Arcadia), Jack Gough (Adrian) and Blake Benson (Endicott). Evan Beers leads a strong defensive group that will need to be on top of their game as the Mustangs look from their current stable of goaltenders to replace All-American Ty Outen who moved on to D-1 at Long Island University. If goaltending is consistent, this team has all the ingredients to win the Mac and first auto-bid to the national tournament.
Wilkes returns a very experienced roster led by a deep forward group including seniors Nick Swain and Max Cocchi. The blue line is also experienced with seniors Cole Jungworth, Luke Dobles and Joe Johnson providing experience in front of a pair of seniors in veteran goaltender Jack Perna and Salve Regina transfer Anthony Del Tufo. Many think that experience is a key to success and if that is the case, coach Tyler Hynes team should be in the hunt for the MAC championship in early 2025.
The Dark Horses
Alvernia coach Andrew Burke will need to find both leadership and point production form his roster to replace Logan vande Meerakker who has moved on to graduation. Goaltender Jackson Fellner enjoyed a very successful freshman season and will need to build on that foundation for a successful 2024-25 campaign. Issac Chapman and Hunter Alden both produced over twenty points next season and will need to lead a balanced group of forward lines to produce goals in front of Fellner. Don’t be surprised if the Golden Wolves emerge as contenders early in the MAC.
Neumann’s second-year coach, Michael Heddon will need to find some production from a roster that lost several key contributors up front. Yancy Whittaker and Luke Croucher will need to lead and produce a younger forward group in search of offense for the Black Knights.
Players to watch
Alvernia: Isaac Chapman – forward: Jackson Fellner – goaltender
Arcadia: Bryce Battaglia – forward; Brendan Dicker – forward
Misericordia: Justin Beers – defense; Jack Tos – forward
King’s: Ethan Hersant – forward; Kent Lee – forward
Wilkes: Cole Jungworth – defense; Nick Swain – forward
USCHO predicted finish
Stevenson
Wilkes
Alvernia
Neumann
King’s
Lebanon Valley
Arcadia
Misericordia
Arcadia and Misericordia both kick-off their seasons in the Western Massachusetts Invitational and Buffalo State Tournament respectively in search of early season hardware. Geneseo will host Wilkes, Stevenson plays host to Canton while Alvernia also hosts a SUNYAC opponent with Cortland playing the Golden Wolves.
