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NCAA D-III West Men’s Hockey Weekend Wrap

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St. Norbert split with Trine over the weekend in a big NCHA series. (Photo Credit: Patrick Ferron/St. Norbert Athletics)

Two top 10 teams in the USCHO.com poll went at it over the weekend as Trine faced St. Norbert, and ultimately, the two teams ended their series with a split.

The No. 7 Thunder handed the Green Knights their first loss of the year on Saturday, winning 4-0 on the road over the second-ranked team in the country.

Christian Wong-Ramos came up big as he made 29 saves on his way to his third shutout win of the year.

The Thunder are now 10-1-1 overall and 6-1-1 in the NCHA.

St. Norbert is 12-1 overall and 7-1 in the conference and won Friday’s game 2-1 as it handed Trine its first loss of the year. Cameron Morris scored the game winner in that one. Hunter Garve came through with 23 saves.

Neither team could convert on the power play as the Green Knights went 0-for-2 and the Thunder were 0-for-3.

While the two teams split, Trine comes out of the weekend still atop the standings, holding a point lead over St. Norbert.

Gusties continue win streak

Gustavus was once 0-3. Six wins later, the Gusties are the hottest team in the MIAC.

They completed a sweep of Augsburg over the weekend, winning both games by a 5-1 score, and are still in first place in the conference, sitting at 5-1 in MIAC play and 6-3 overall.

Marko Belak racked up 25 saves in Saturday’s win, with Jackson McCarthy tallying two assists and Grant Ellings racking up a goal and an assist. The game was tied at 1-1 before Gustavus scored the next four goals.

Belak finished with 14 saves and Jack Suchy recorded a goal and assist to help lead the offense for Gustavus, which is in the midst of its best win streak since the 2013-14 season.

Saints split with Pipers

St. Scholastica ended its weekend series with Hamline with a 6-1 win.

Nathan Adrian scored twice and dished out an assist while Jacob Seitz tallied a goal and assist. Eino Rissanen made 26 saves as the Saints improved to 7-4-1 overall and 3-3 in the MIAC. Hamline dropped to 3-6 overall and 2-4 in the conference.

St. Scholastica saw its five-game win streak snapped on Friday as Calvin Knight scored a game-winning goal with 37 seconds remaining to lift Hamline to a thrilling 5-4 win.

Carson Simon had a big night for the Pipers, coming through with a hat trick. He also dished out an assist. Along with Knight coming up big in crunch time, he also tallied three assists. Brandon McNamara made big plays as well, finishing with four assists, while Maximillian Haselbacher racked up 28 saves.

Good weekend for the Cardinals

Saint Mary’s was nothing short of dominant as it opened its series against Concordia with a 5-0 win on Friday. The Cardinals then played the Cobbers to a 2-2 Saturday but came away with a shootout win.

A.J. Ruskowski stopped a season-best 44 shots, including all three attempts in the OT shootout.

On Friday, Ruskowsk recorded his first shutout of the season. Joona Juntunen and Warner Young each scored a goal and had an assist. Tommy Wright finished with two assists.

The Cardinals are 5-3-1 overall and are still unbeaten in the MIAC with a 3-0-1- record.

Blugolds pull off upset

UW-Eau Claire needed a big win and the Blugolds got it, blanking 10th-ranked UW-River Falls 3-0 on Saturday.

Max Gutjahr stopped 25 shots and made 14 of those saves in the final period as the Blugolds won their first game over a top 10 opponent since January of this year. The win also capped a weekend where Eau Claire won both games via shutout as it beat Northland 6-0 one night earlier.

Tyler Herzberg , Max Dronen and Connor Szmul all scored for the Blugolds, who improved to 4-5-1 overall and 3-1 in the WIAC.

Two thrilling wins

UW-Superior went to overtime in both of its games over the weekend, knocking off No. 10 UW-River Falls 3-2 before closing things out with a 4-3 OT win over UW-Stout on Saturday.

The Yellowjackets kept their unbeaten streak in Friday games intact, improving to 5-0 as they took down the Falcons. Reed Stark was the hero, scoring at the 2:50 mark of the extra session for the win. Kobe Grant made 39 saves for his second win and helped Superior end a five-game winless streak against River Falls. Daniel Rozsival and Justin Dauphinais also scored goals for the Yellowjackets. He had an assist on the game-winning goal as well.

Stark again was clutch when it mattered most as he also scored the game winner in Saturday’s win over the Blue Devils. He scored at the 2:10 mark of OT and also racked up two assists in the victory.

It’s the first time all season Superior as won back-to-back games as it improved to 6-3-1 overall and 3-1 in the WIAC.

Shootout win

UW-Stevens Point and UW-Stout played to a 2-2 tie on Friday but the No. 13 Pointers managed to win the shootout.

They wrapped up the weekend with an 10-0 win over Northland, improving to 4-3-1 overall and 1-1-1 in conference play.

Alex Proctor made 32 saves. Fletcher Anderson and Chris Engelbert both scored in the shootout. Andrew Poulias and Peyton Hart scored in regulation for the Pointers.

Stevens Point scored eight goals in the third in its win over Northland and six of those goals came off the power play, setting a school record. Proctor recorded his first shutout of the year.

A sweep for the Bulldogs

Sixth-ranked Adrian needed overtime to finish off a two-win weekend against the Sabres. 

Ryan Pitoscia was the hero, scoring in OT to lift the Bulldogs to a 4-3 win.

Ian Amsbaugh played a key role in the win, scoring a goal and tallying two assists, while Dershahn Stewart racked up 25 saves. Stewart had 25 saves in Friday’s 4-3 win, which didn’t come easy as Adrian saw a 3-0 lead disappear before Patrick Saini scored the game winner. Connor May finished with two assists. Stewart made 11 of his saves in Friday’s win in the third period. Adrian is 7-3 overall and 4-2 in the NCHA and has won its last four games.

Spartans go unbeaten against Vikings

Aurora swept Lawrence with a pair of 5-1 wins and improved to 8-2 overall and 6-2 in conference play.

In Saturday’s win, Aurora put together a complete game, with Hassan Akl leading the way with a pair of goals. Akl also came through with three assists and JaCob Mucitelli made 20 saves.

Four goals over the final two periods were key for Aurora in Friday’s victory. Five different players scored a goal and Jacob Brockman came through with two assists. Mucitelli made 16 saves.

NCAA D-II/III East Men’s Ice Hockey Weekend Wrap-up – December 9, 2024

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In a thrilling series between Top 5 teams, Geneseo skated away with a 1-1 OT tie and a 5-2 win over the Pioneers to enter the break unbeaten (Photo by Benjamin Gajewski – Geneseo)

It was quite a weekend for ranked teams who played each other in the east in what was for many the final weekend of play in the first half of the season. Hobart flexed its muscles handing rival Elmira a couple of lopsided defeats to remain undefeated on the season while Geneseo with a win and an overtime tie against Utica showed they too were worthy of their unbeaten record and sitting atop the UCHC. Wilkes and Stevenson split their weekend series as did Curry and UNE while Hamilton kept cruising in NESCAC. Elsewhere there were more great games, the usual surprises, and overtimes and, yes, even celebrity sightings at rinks where the home team showed off a bit for A-listers (see SUNYAC update below for more details). Here is the wrap-up across all the conferences in the east as we head to the semester break for most of the teams:

CNE

Endicott capped off a 3-0-0 week with a weekend sweep of Western New England. After shutting out Connecticut College, 3-0 on Tuesday night, the Gulls closed out their first half in CNE play with 4-1 and  6-1 wins over the Golden Bears. Andrew Kurapov paced the attack on Friday with a goal and an assist as the Gulls scored two early and two late goals to earn the win at home. On Saturday, the Golden Bears took a 1-0 lead off the stick of Nolan Dawson only to see the Gulls score the next six goals in 6-1 loss. Primo Self scored two goals and added an assist as Endicott produced three power play goals. Endicott is     7-1-0 in league play.

Curry and the University of New England split a two-game series with each team capturing a 2-1 win on home ice. Friday night saw the Nor’easters break a 1-1 tie in the third period on a goal by Chip Hamlett and goaltender Joey Stanizzi stopped 22 of 23 Colonel attempts in a 2-1 win. Back home on Saturday it was the colonels who returned the favor with George Vonakis producing the third period game-winning goal in front of Goaltender Shane Soderwall who stopped 29 of 30 UNE shots.

Suffolk extended their win streak to three games with a weekend sweep of Johnson & Wales by identical 1-0 scores. Michael McEachern’s first period goal was all goaltender CJ Hapward needed from the offense as he stopped all 22 Wildcats shot to pickup the shutout win on Friday. On Saturday, McEachern set up Ryan Webb’s second period goal and Hapward made 17 saves to post back-to-back shutouts for the sweep. The weekend wins moved the Rams to 6-4-2 overall and 3-4-1 in league play.

MAC

Wilkes looked to further solidify their position atop the MAC standings with some good results from a weekend series against an always contending Stevenson squad. On Friday, it was some special teams magic that helped the visiting Mustangs to a 2-1 overtime win. Liam McCanney scored Steven’s regulation goal while the team was shorthanded, and lake Benson sealed the win on the power play in the extra session. Goals were far more plentiful in Saturday’s re-match as the Colonels scored three times with the man advantage to stretch out a 5-1 lead before the Mustangs closed to within a goal at the end of the second period. Joe Johnson provided the only tally of the third period for the final margin of 6-4 and a weekend split for the Colonels.

Neumann played Alvernia to close out the first half of the season and also split their series and in the process picked up their first loss of the season. On Friday Max Donohoe recorded a hat trick and what stood as the game-winning goal as the Knights eked out a 5-4 win over the Golden Wolves. On Saturday, the visitors took advantage of a goal and an assist each from Frazer Dodd and Isaac Chapman in a 3-2 win to split the series. Goaltender Will Augustine stopped 32 of 34 shots to pick up the win for Alvernia.

Arcadia and Lebanon Valley also closed out the first half playing a weekend split with the Flying Dutchmen claiming victory on Friday night by a 3-1 score. Cade Helmer scored a pair of goals for LVC in the win. On Saturday, the Knights rebounded with a 4-1 win spearheaded by two goals from Jude Cole. Cole opened the scoring and then provided one of two empty-net goals for the Knights to provide the final margin of victory.

MASCAC

Plymouth State won a pair of games to remain unbeaten in MASCAC play entering the semester break. On Thursday, the Panthers took a big road win over Massachusetts-Dartmouth by a score of 4-2. The Panthers started fast on first period goals from Brendan Doyle, David Matousek and Tikhon Ashikhmin and took advantage of Patrick O’Connell’s ENG in the third to post the road victory. On Saturday, Aiden Winslow proved to be a very hot goaltender for Westfield State as the Owl netminder stopped 43 shots including 20 in the third period alone to keep WSU in the game. A scoreless regulation tie was ended just 24 seconds into the extra session as Will Pray and Connor Tait set up Rider McCallum for the game-winner in a 1-0 win.

Fitchburg State also closed out the first half with a pair of wins in conference action starting with Thursday’s 1-0 overtime win over MCLA. Both goaltenders were outstanding, but Frederick Soderberg proved to be one save better as Jack Johansen finally solved the Trailblazers’ Matthew Gover in the first minute of overtime for a 1-0 win. On Saturday, the Falcons surrendered the first goal of the game to Framingham State before responding with five unanswered goals to cruise to a 5-1 win. Five different players scored with Samuel Rennick pacing the attack with a goal and two assists.

On Sunday, in a non-conference game, the Falcons dropped a 4-0 decision to Keene State who swept two weekend games of their own having downed St. Michael’s on Saturday in overtime, 4-3, on a goal from Corey Tumenas.

Anna Maria closed out the first half with a split in their final two MASCAC contests. After blowing out Framingham State on Thursday by a score of 7-2, the AmCats lost their scoring mojo in a 3-1 loss to Worcester State on Saturday. Guillaume Coulombe paced the offense against the Rams scoring two goals and assisting on a third in the win over the Rams. On Saturday, the Lancers had the hot goaltender as Wyatt Friedlander stopped 46 of 47 shots and Martin Dlugolinsky scored a pair of goals in a 3-1 win over the AmCats.

NE-10

In a league where you play all your conference foes four times, the familiarity often breeds some interesting results as was the case in Post securing a weekend sweep of games over Assumption. Aidan Canady produced a goal, and an assist and Wyatt Noble scored the game winner in the third period as the Eagles took a 5-3 win over the Greyhounds on Friday. Goaltender Benjamin Cunneen stopped 51 of 54 shots to backstop Post to the win. On Saturday, Cunneen was again impressive stopping 43 of 44 shots as the Eagles eked out a 2-1 win with Scotty Swain netting the game-winning goal midway through the third period.

Southern New Hampshire moved above .500 in NE-10 play with a weekend sweep of Franklin Pierce to conclude their first semester in conference play. On Friday, the Penmen used goals from Tyler Murray and Ryan Pomposelli and 31 saves from netminder Collin Berke to post a 2-0 shutout win over the Ravens. On Saturday, the game was again low-scoring as the Penmen rallied from a one-goal deficit to earn the 2-1 win with Murray scoring the winning goal late in the third period.

NEHC

Hobart hosted rival Elmira and demonstrated why they are the nation’s #1 team with a pair of dominant wins over the Soaring Eagles. On Friday, a five-goal third period blew open the contest and helped the Statesmen to a comfortable 7-1 win over the visitors. Chirs Duclair opened and closed the scoring for Hobart while Bauer Morrissey added a pair of assists. On Saturday, Hobart closed out the first half with a solid and balanced 6-0 win with six different goal scorers supporting Mavrick Goyer in goal. Goyer made 16 saves to earn the shutout win that moved Hobart to 10-0-0 on the season.

Babson took advantage of a weekend sweep of New England College to close out the first half at 5-3-0 in NEHC action. On Friday, Danny Cavanagh, Wyatt George, Tommy Rooney, and Brendan Kennedy scored four unanswered goals to pace a 4-1 Babson road win. Goaltender Nate Mueller made 20 saves to earn the win. On Saturday, the Beavers started fast taking a 2-0 lead only to see Egor Osipik answer with a pair of goals form the Pilgrims to tie the game at 2-2. Ian Driscoll answered with a power play goal and Thomas Kramer added the final tally in the final minute of the third period for a 4-2 win. Mueller was again solid in goal making 28 saves to backstop the Babson sweep.

Skidmore traveled to play Massachusetts-Boston in the final series before the semester and each team took a win over the weekend. On Friday, the Beacons scored a pair of power play goals and two shorthanded goals to pace a 6-3 win over the Thoroughbreds. Jazz Krivtsov led the attack with two goals and an assist. On Saturday, the Thoroughbreds rebounded with a 4-0 win with Evan Brown assisting on three of the Skidmore goals. Goaltender Tommy Aitken stopped 38 Beacon shots to earn the shutout win and help Skidmore move to 5-3-0 in NEHC play.

NESCAC

Hamilton hosted Williams and Middlebury over the weekend and extended their win streak to three games with 5-1 and 6-0 wins respectively over the Ephs and Panthers. On Friday, the Continentals erupted for four goals after a scoreless first period with Jacob Ierfino scoring twice to lead the attack in a 5-1 win. On Saturday, Ierfino got the party started in the final minute of the opening period and Hamilton added five more goals from five different players to post the 6-0 win over Middlebury. Goaltender Charlie Archer stopped 24 shots to earn the shutout for Hamilton who will close out the first half with a non-conference game on Friday against Nazareth.

Amherst also extended their win streak to three games with a weekend sweep of Middlebury and Williams. On Friday, the Panthers got on the board first off the stick of Revy Mack before the Mammoth scored four unanswered goals on the way to a 4-1 win. On Saturday, Amherst came back from a 3-1 deficit with two third period goals by Max Thiessen and Bobby Luca to tie the score at 3-3. Josh Burke provided the overtime winner on the power play for Amherst with just two seconds remaining in the extra session in an exciting 4-3 win over the Ephs.

Conn College split a series against Bowdoin and Colby to finish the first half at 4-2-0 in NESCAC play. After falling to Bowdoin 5-1 on Friday night where the Polar Bears raced to a 3-0 lead on the way to a comfortable win, the Camels rebounded against a hot Colby squad on Saturday. The Camels started fast with the first three goals and cruised to a 6-3 win over the Mules. Logan Cleary and Will Lawrence each scored a goal and added an assist for the Camels.

SUNYAC

Fredonia leveled their conference record at 3-3-0 on the final weekend of the semester with a sweep of Plattsburgh and Potsdam by identical 2-0 scores. Spurred on by the celebration of the 30th anniversary of their NCAA team, the Blue Devils were motivated by a attendance by alumni and a pre-game talk from NBA legend Charles Barkley and took advantage of 32 saves from Charles-Anthony Barbeau and goals from Luke Morris and Riley See in a 2-0 win over the Cardinals. Fredonia completed their weekend success with a 2-0 win over Potsdam where Barbeau recorded his second shutout in a row by again recording 32 saves in the win. Morris again provided the game winner while Gavin Bloder added some insurance just thirteen seconds after Morris scored on the power-play.

Cortland won they only game they were able to play as Saturday’s contest against Oswego was postponed due to rink and ice issues. On Friday, the Red Dragons improved to 5-0-0 on the road with a 3-1 win over Canton. Trailing 1-0 after two periods, Cortland saw third period goals from Dino Mannetta, Domenic Settimo and Colby Seitz to down the battling Kangaroos.

In yet another game that is becoming increasingly formulaic in D-III hockey, Canton rallied on Saturday from a 3-1 third period deficit to Morrisville with two goals by Brendan Morrow and Reilly McKinnon’s EAG in the final thirty seconds of regulation to send the game to overtime. Jackson Drysdale provided the game winner with just one minute remaining in the bonus period for a 4-3 Kangaroo OT win.

UCHC

In the new contending battle for UCHC supremacy, Utica traveled to face Geneseo for a weekend series that featured a pair of top five teams in the rankings nationally. On Friday, Jakob Breault for the Pioneers and Alex Dameski for the Knights exchanged goals in what finished as a thrilling 1-1 overtime tie (Utica won the shootout). Goaltenders Bryan Landesberger (Utica) and Adam Harris (Geneseo) were outstanding in the game that had a definite playoff feel. On Saturday, Harris (50 saves) and Peter Morgan with two goals were too much for Utica as the Knights skated off with a solid 5-2 win in a game that featured pure action and zero penalties. The win kept Geneseo among the unbeatens as they close the first half at 10-0-1.

Chatham ended the first half on a positive note taking two games at home against Manhattanville to post their first conference wins on the season. The Cougars downed the Valiants on Friday as Michael Roby had a hand in all the Chatham scoring with two goals and an assist in a 3-2 win. On Saturday, Roby setup the game winner from Camden Smith midway through the third period in a hard-fought 2-1 win to sweep the Valiants.

Three Biscuits

CJ Hapward – Suffolk – stopped a combined 39 shots from Johnson & Wales to help the Rams to a pair of 1-0 wins over the Wildcats which moved Suffolk to fourth in the CNE standings.

Charles-Anthony Barbeau – Fredonia – picked up a pair of shutout wins over Plattsburgh and Potsdam with matching 32-save performances for the Blue Devils over the weekend.

Max Donohoe – Neumann – recorded a hat trick in pacing the Knights to a thrilling 5-4 win over Alvernia on Friday night.

For most the first half of the season has come to a close at the semester break. There are a very few games upcoming during the upcoming week,  but this past weekend should have everyone excited and waiting with great anticipation for the second half and pursuit of conference and national tournament glory. Will be checking in with Santa later this week so we can see who is on his naughty and nice list entering the holiday season.

 

 

Monday 10: Long Island splits with Vermont, Minnesota shuts out Michigan on back-to-back nights, Minnesota State unbeaten in nine, Western Michigan-Denver series provides excitement

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Valtteri Piironen (right) embraces Tyriq Outen (left) after LIU’s 3-2 win against Vermont on Friday night (photo: LIU Athletics).

Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature.

1. Minnesota blanks Michigan twice

The sentence “Michigan was shut out on back-to-back nights” isn’t very common in the English language. In fact, the last time that happened in a series was way, WAY back in January of 1943, when the Gophers’ Mack Thayer made 80 saves to shut out the Wolverines.

This past weekend, two goalies helped share the load for the Gophers, who are now 8-0 in the Big Ten and have won six straight since losing to Bemidji State on Nov. 16. On Friday, Nathan Airey earned his first collegiate shutout with 32 saves in a 6-0 win. And on Saturday, Liam Souliere got in on the action, with 22 saves in a 2-0 win.

2. WMU takes four points from Denver in epic series split

Western Michigan came within 64 seconds of an outright sweep of defending national champion Denver.

Instead, the Pioneers’ Samu Salminen scored late in Saturday night’s game to tie it up and Carter King netted the overtime game-winner to help Denver escape with two points in the series. However, it was WMU who earned the majority of the points and stayed atop the NCHC standings.

The Broncos beat the Pioneers 3-2 on Friday night, getting goals from Tim Washe, Matteo Costantini and Zack Sharp to earn the win. The Broncos, now 10-3-1, now go into Christmas break with a four-point lead on second-place Arizona State in the NCHC standings and will return to action Dec. 29 in the Great Lakes Invitational.

3. Providence sweeps CC as Leaman bests Mayotte

Coming into the weekend, the big storyline for the Providence-Colorado College matchup revolved around the programs’ head coaches. Colorado College’s Kris Mayotte was an assistant coach at Providence under Nate Leaman from 2014-2019.

After this weekend’s results, it seems that, at least for now, the mentor has bested the mentee. Providence beat Colorado College 4-3 and 5-1, as the Friars extended their winning streak to five. Nine different players scored for Providence on the weekend, while Taige Harding had four assists for the Friars in Saturday’s game.

Providence, who is 4-1-0 against NCHC teams this year, is off for the holidays and returns for the Ledyard Bank Classic Dec. 28. Colorado College returns to action next week against rivals Denver.

4. Dartmouth drops a pair for first time this season

A pair of 3-2 decisions went the wrong way for Dartmouth this weekend.

The Big Green, who started the season on a five-game win streak, dropped a pair of road games to St. Lawrence and Clarkson this past weekend, dropping to 6-3-1 on the season and 4-2-1 in ECAC play. On Friday, Dartmouth outshot St. Lawrence 31-19 but the Saints’ Mason Kucenski was the difference-maker in the game with 29 saves. On Saturday, Clarkson’s Ayrton Martino scored the game winner late in the third period to give the Golden Knights the victory.

The Big Green have one more game before the holiday break, and it should be a big one – a contest against in-state rival New Hampshire on Friday.

5. Colgate earns hard-fought split with Cornell

Elsewhere in the ECAC, there’s a little surprise: Colgate is sitting atop the league standings.

The Raiders, 8-8-2 overall and 5-2-1 in conference play, earned four of six points this weekend from Cornell to stay on top of second-place Quinnipiac.

On Friday night in Ithaca, the Raiders went up 2-0 with goals in the first two periods but let the Big Red back into it. Ryan Walsh’s power-play goal midway through the third period tied it at 2-2; Charlie Major won it for Cornell in overtime. On Saturday in Hamilton, the Raiders made sure not to let that happen, winning 6-3. The Raiders took a 3-1 lead late in the second period before two goals from Ondrej Psenicka, one seconds before the second period ended and the second just 1:42 into the third, tied it up at 3-3. However, the Big Red took a major penalty a minute later, and the Raiders took full advantage. Michael Neumeier and Reid Irwin scored on the man advantage 39 seconds apart to give Colgate a 5-3 lead, then Max Nagel put it away late in the period with an empty-netter.

Colgate is now off until Jan. 10, when they will host Long Island in nonconference action.

6. North Dakota fends off Miami to sweep in Oxford

North Dakota had to dig deep this weekend against Miami. In both games, Miami gave North Dakota fits, but ultimately the Fighting Hawks fended off the RedHawks both nights and escaped Oxford with a sweep.

On Friday night, Miami led 4-2 after two periods but UND scored three times in the third period to win 5-4. Ten different UND players recorded at least a point, including Sacha Boisvert–who scored the game-winner with 23 seconds left and also recorded an assist in the first period. In Saturday’s game, UND went up 2-0 early but Miami answered in the second period to tie it up going into the third period. Once again, the Fighting Hawks broke out in the final 20 minutes. Jackson Kunz, who netted a goal on Friday, scored the eventual game winner just three minutes into the third, then Jayden Perron gave UND some insurance five minutes later.

The Fighting Hawks, now 9-7-1 overall, host St. Cloud State this weekend to close out the first half of the season.

7. Sacred Heart, Bentley keep pace atop AHA standings

Sacred Heart completed a five-point weekend, and combined with Bentley’s four-point series, helped the Pioneers maintain a two-point lead in the Atlantic Hockey America standings this weekend.

The Pioneers, who are now 8-5-2 in AHA play, beat Canisius 4-2 on Friday behind a pair of goals by Reid Pabich. On Saturday the Griffins rallied from a 3-1 deficit to the the game but the Pioneers ultimately won the shootout 3-2. Bentley, meanwhile, also won 4-2 on Friday night, besting Mercyhurst behind two goals by Ethan Leyh. However, Saturday night’s game finished 2-2 and the Lakers took the extra point in the shootout.

The Pioneers have 29 points as the teams break for the holidays, with Bently sitting at 27. Niagara is in third with 27.

8. Minnesota State takes five points from BGSU, extends unbeaten streak to nine

When Minnesota State opened its CCHA schedule on Nov. 1 against longtime rivals Bemidji State, it did so in inauspicious fashion: a 1-0 shutout loss on the road.

Since then, however, it’s been all gas, no breaks for the Mavericks. They haven’t lost in regulation since.

On Saturday night, the Mavericks completed a five-point sweep of Bowling Green and extended their unbeaten streak to nine. MSU beat BGSU 4-1 on Friday thanks to a 20-save effort from Alex Tracy then dispatched the Falcons 3-2 in overtime on Saturday night when Rhett Pitlick scored twice, including the game winner in overtime.

This weekend’s results extended MSU’s unbeaten streak to nine games; they haven’t lost since that game in Bemidji in November and have been taken to a shootout twice (a win against St. Thomas and a loss to Northern Michigan).

9. UMass tops BU

UMass started its home-and-home series with Boston University on the perfect note.

The Minutemen blanked the Terriers 4-0 on Saturday night in Boston. Sophomore goaltender Michael Hrabal stopped all 32 shots he faced for UMass. Daniel Jenčko, Lucas Olvestad and Kenny Connors all scored on the power play for the Minutemen, while Ryan Lautenbach also scored. Lucas Mercuri also had four helpers for UMass, which improves to 8-6-2 overall.

BU, which is now 8-6-1 overall, hadn’t lost to the Minutemen at home since Feb. 1, 2019. The teams will head to Amherst for the series finale on Wednesday.

10. LIU splits with Vermont

Long Island has been one of the feel-good stories of the college hockey season so far.

The Sharks kept some of that going this weekend, splitting with Vermont and climbing up to No. 21 in the PairWise Rankings in the process.

On Friday, what was a night game going into the third period got interesting early, with Onni Leppänen broke a 1-1 tie just more than a minute into the final frame. Andrius Kulbis-Marino added the Sharks third goal on an empty-netter late in the period, but Max Strand helped the Catamounts get one back with a minute to go in the game. Tyriq Outen, who made 30 saves, helped the Sharks keep their lead with the extra attacker. On Saturday, however, Vermont won a wild 7-4 game. The teams combined for five goals in the first period and Austin Brimmer scored twice for LIU, but Thimas Sinclair likewise scored twice for Vermont to help the Catamounts hold on for the win.

The Sharks, now 8-6-1, take on fellow independent Stonehill next weekend to close out the first half of their season.

Women’s Division I College Hockey: Weekend Wrap December 9, 2024

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(1) Wisconsin at Minnesota State

The Badgers took advantage of an early penalty with a goal from KK Harvey to go up 1-0 just two minutes into the game on Friday. But the Mavericks pushed back on the Badgers, ultimately outshooting them 24-23 over the game and keeping the nation’s top offense in check. Wisconsin showed off their skills in transition with some tic-tac-toe passing that led to Kirsten Simms scoring five minutes into the second to make it a 2-0 game. MSU’s Madison Mashuga continued her hot streak, scoring on the power play late in the second to make it a 2-1 game. But Minnesota State could not find the back of the net in the third and Wisconsin held off a bit of a score from the Mavericks for the win. On Saturday, the Badgers seemed to have reset and they looked a bit more like the top team in the country. Maggie Scannell opened the scoring finishing a play that started with a long pass from Katie Kotlowski that sprung Scannell alone into the zone to make it 1-0. Edwards doubled the lead near the end of the first after a turnover to make it 2-0 at the intermission. Harvey showed off her vision in the second as she held the puck between the circles and found a perfect lane to send the puck bar down and make it a 3-0 game. O’Brien lit the lamp 25 seconds into the third on a power play odd-player rush and Scannell added her second of the game on the power play later in the period to secure a 5-0 win and weekend sweep for Wisconsin.

(3) Minnesota at St. Thomas

The Gophers were dominant on Saturday as Abbey Murphy tallied two goals and three assists to lead Minnesota to a 5-0 win. Josefin Bouveng had the lone goal in the first and Nelli Laitenen’s assist on the tally was her 50th point as a Gopher. Bouveng scored again, this time on the power play, midway through the second and that seemed to really open things up for Minnesota. Murphy scored two goals in a row shortly after to make it 4-0 at the second intermission. Chloe Primerano scored her second goal of the season in the third to secure the 5-0 win. It was freshman goalieHannah Clark’s first career shutout. In the second game, it took half the first period for the teams to really ramp up, but then things happened quickly. Peyton Hemp put Minnesota up 1-0, but Rylee Bartz replied for St. Thomas to make it a 1-1 game. That didn’t last long as 26 seconds later Laitenen put Minnesota ahead 2-1. The Gophers gave themselves some breathing room in the second with goals from Hemp and Sydney Morrow to make it 4-1 after two. Murphy scored early in the third to make it 5-1, but former Gopher Sadie Lindsay replied to make it 5-2. The Tommies could not mount more of a comeback and Primerano added a power play goal with 1.6 seconds left in the game to secure the 6-2 win and weekend sweep for Minnesota. 

(4) Minnesota Duluth at (8) St. Cloud State

In the first game, Alice Sauriol gave the Huskies a 1-0 lead early in the first and they would hold that for 40 minutes as Sanni Ahola made 34 saves in the game. Olivia Wallin fed Olivia Mobley from behind the net and Mobley tied the game early in the third. The teams could not find a winner through overtime. In the shootout, Ève Gascon made all three saves and Mobley scored the only goal to give the Bulldogs the extra league point. On Saturday, Sauriol and Taylor Larson forced a turnover at the blue line and took off in transition. Sauriol’s shot was saved, but the rebound came right to Larson, who put it back to give St. Cloud the 1-0 lead. As with the first game, that lead would hold for more than 40 minutes into the third. It was once again Mobley, who grabbed the puck in the neutral zone and skated through the defense to score short-handed and tie the game 1-1 four minutes into the third. With under four minutes to play, Clara Van Wieren picked up the puck in her own defensive end and weaved through traffic before unleashing a shot just past the blue line that beat Ahola to give Minnesota Duluth their first lead of the weekend. Mary Kate O’Brien added an empty-netter to secure the 3-1 win. 

Dartmouth at (6) Clarkson

The Big Green gave Clarkson all they could handle on Friday night and this game was tied into the third period. Dartmouth opened the scoring with their first shot of the game as Lauren Messier took a deflection off a Golden Knights player and put it in the back of the net. That seemed to shake Clarkson up and they quickly responded with goals from Anne Cherkowski and Raedyn Spademan a minute apart to make it a 2-1 game for the home team. Sena Catterall’s power play goal early in the second extended the lead to 3-1. Dartmouth started to push back through the second and found purchase late when Meredith Jensen’s shot from the blue line made it through traffic to the back of the net to make it 3-2. Four minutes into the third, the Big Green capitalized on a power play as Laura Fuoco put away a loose puck in the crease to tie the game. The tie was short lived as Dartmouth was able to kill a power play, but gave up a goal to Haley Winn just after the penalty expired to give Clarkson the 4-3 advantage. The Big Green had a great opportunity late and pulled the goalie on the power play to have a 6-on-4 advantage, but despite several chances, couldn’t find the back of the net and the Golden Knights got an empty-netter from Jenna Goodwin to secure the 5-3 win. 

Harvard at (6) Clarkson

The Golden Knights jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first and never looked back as they took a 5-1 win over the Crimson on Saturday. Anne Cherkowski, Baylee Kirwan and Rhea Hicks each scored in the first. Ella Lucia pulled one back for Harvard in the waning seconds of the first to send the teams to the locker room with Clarkson up 3-1. Caroline Goffredo added a goal in the second and Kirwan’s second of the game in the third secured the win for the Golden Knights. 

(9) Quinnipiac at Princeton

This battle of the number two offense at Princeton and the number two defense at Quinnipiac went to the Tigers on Saturday. As expected, it was a chess match of back and forth play. After no scoring in the first, Laurence Frenette picked up a puck that slid off Emerson Jarvis’ stick as she drove the net and redirected it into the net. The Bobcat defense did a good job keeping Princeton’s offense in check. The Tigers are averaging nearly 40 shots per game this season, but managed just 22 in this game. Sarah Paul got Princeton on the board early in the third on the power play. As the focus of the play shifted to the goaltender’s right, Paul cheated into open ice at the top of the circles and was free to one-time a pass from Angelina DiGirolamo. In overtime, Doyle left her net to gather a loose puck as Paul chased it down. Doyle’s pass off the boards went to the stick of Princeton’s Jane Kuehl, who showed great vision and patience as she held the puck and crashed toward the far post, passing it behind Doyle and through the crease to a waiting Paul, who tapped it in to give the Tigers the win. 

(10) Boston College at Holy Cross

The Eagles took a 1-0 lead early in the first on a power play goal from Sammy Taber that came off the faceoff. Despite outshooting the Crusaders 19-6 in the middle frame, BC could not find the net. After more than 50 minutes of scoreless hockey following the early goal, Holy Cross tied the game as Mackenzie King cleaned up a loose puck during a scrum in front of the net to tie the game 1-1 and force overtime. In the extra frame, Alexia Moreau held the puck in her defensive zone while her teammates switched out and then carried the puck in on her own and wristed the puck into the net to end the game. The victory gave Holy Cross their first ever series win over Boston College as the teams had split their previous two meetings. 

Harvard at (11) St. Lawrence

After a back and forth first frame, the Saints blew this game open in the second, scoring four consecutive goals to take a 4-0 lead into the third. Abby Hustler opened the scoring with a shot from down low to make it 1-0. Anna Segedi scored on a wraparound to make it 2-0 a few minutes later. Taylor Lum deflected the puck in to make it 3-0 and Alexia Côté’s shot to the upper corner closed out the second to give SLU a 4-0 lead. In the final frame, Antonina Dinges got Harvard on the board after a turnover and Sophie Ensley scored with 10.2 seconds left on the clock, but the Crimson ran out of time and St. Lawrence took the 4-2 win. 

Dartmouth at (11) St. Lawrence

Tori Verbeek completed a pretty passing play at the end of the first to give St. Lawrence a 1-0 lead at the first intermission. Sarah Thompson redirected the puck in the second to extend the Saints’ lead to 2-0. Emma-Sofie Nordström recorded her fourth shutout of the season to help SLU to the 2-0 win and weekend sweep. 

(12) Penn State at Mercyhurst

It was a streaky game on Friday. After a scoreless first period, Maddy Christian scored twice for Penn State in the middle of the second to give the Nittany Lions a 2-0 lead. Mercyhurst replied with a goal from Makayla Javier with three minutes to go in the first and a power play goal from Julia Schalin in the opening minute of the third to tie the game 2-2. But PSU responded quickly as Grace Outwater scored to make it 3-2 and Tessa Janecke added an insurance goal late to secure the 4-2 win. On Saturday, Alyssa Machado opened the scoring midway through the first, putting back a rebound to give Penn State the 1-0 lead. The Lakers tied the game later in the first as Kylee Mahoney took the puck nearly end to end to make it 1-1. In the second, Janecke sniped a goal to make it 2-1, but with 29 seconds left in the period, Mahoney scored her second with a rip from the top of the circles to tie the game once more. Janecke scored the game winner in the third, taking a turnover on a breakaway and beating the goalie to give the Nittany Lions a 3-2 lead they’d hold until the final buzzer. 

(14) Yale at Union

Gracie Gilkyson ripped a shot from the blue line in the first to give Yale a 1-0 lead. Anna Bargman doubled the lead in the first minute of the second. Maddie Suitor cut into the lead for Union with a power play goal late in the second to make it 2-1. Emma McGowan scored her first career goal, cleaning up a loose puck in the third to make it 3-1 and secure the win for the Bulldogs. 

(14) Yale at RPI

The Bulldogs skated to a 1-0 lead in the first thanks to a shorthanded goal from Carina D’Antonio. With under four to play in the opening frame, Nyah Phillips scored on a two-on-one break with Georgia Bailey to tie the game 1-1 heading into the first intermission. The Engineers were fired up heading into the second and scoring twice in the opening three minutes. Taryn Rathwell scored her first career goal 1:45 into the frame before Sabrina Beaudoin tucked the puck home just 31 seconds later to give RPI the 3-1 lead. Reese Keating made 18 of her 39 saves in the third to keep Yale off the board and the Engineers earned their 11th win of the first half.  It’s the first time since the 2008-09 season that the Engineers have won 11 of their first 19 games.

(15) Connecticut at Maine

Special teams were crucial in this game. UConn outshot the Black Bears 19-10 in the first period, but the teams headed to the locker room in a scoreless tie. Maine scored first when Adriana Van De Leest let go a wrister from the top of the circles to make it 1-0. They doubled their lead on Frederikke Foss’ first career goal. Van De Leest’s shot off the post was free in the crease and Foss put it back to make it a 2-0 game just past the midpoint. Just a minute later, the Huskies scored a power play of their goal when Jada Habisch found space in front of the net and one-timed a pass from Kyla Josifovic. Connecticut tied the game just before intermission when Riley Grimley was able to pick up an errant pass and go in alone on net to make it a 2-2 game heading into the third. UConn took their first lead of the game just 12 seconds into the third off the opening faceoff as Livvy Dewar hit Christina Walker in stride and Walker was in alone on net to make it 3-2. Maine forced overtime late when the puck deflected off a player and landed at the stick of Lily Fetch, who did not miss. Maine took a penalty for too many players on the ice with 1:19 left in regulation. They were able to get the game to overtime, but with the extra player in the extra frame, Ava Rinker was able to send a pass through the crease to Josifovic, who put it away from one knee to give UConn the 4-3 OT win. 

Rankings roundup: How the top 20 NCAA hockey teams fared, Dec. 6-7

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Trevor Connelly (16) scored for Providence in the Friars’ 4-3 win Friday night at home over Colorado College (photo: Providence Athletics).

Here is a rundown of how the top 20 teams in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll of Dec. 2 fared in games over the weekend of Dec. 6-7.

No. 1 Michigan State (12-2-0)
12/06/2024 – No. 1 Michigan State 0 at Wisconsin 4
12/07/2024 – No. 1 Michigan State 3 at Wisconsin 2 (OT)

No. 2 Denver (13-3-0)
12/06/2024 – No. 2 Denver 2 at No. 7 Western Michigan 3
12/07/2024 – No. 2 Denver 3 at No. 7 Western Michigan 2 (OT)

No. 3 Boston College (11-3-1)
12/04/2024 – RV Connecticut 1 at No. 3 Boston College 2 (OT)
12/06/2024 – No. 3 Boston College 3 at No. 14 UMass Lowell 3 (OT)

No. 4 Minnesota (15-2-1)
12/06/2024 – No. 6 Michigan 0 at No. 4 Minnesota 6
12/07/2024 – No. 6 Michigan 0 at No. 4 Minnesota 2

No. 5 Maine (12-2-2)
12/07/2024 – Stonehill 2 at No. 5 Maine 5
12/08/2024 – Stonehill 2 at No. 5 Maine 4

No. 6 Michigan (10-5-1)
12/06/2024 – No. 6 Michigan 0 at No. 4 Minnesota 6
12/07/2024 – No. 6 Michigan 0 at No. 4 Minnesota 2

No. 7 Western Michigan (10-3-1)
12/06/2024 – No. 2 Denver 2 at No. 7 Western Michigan 3
12/07/2024 – No. 2 Denver 3 at No. 7 Western Michigan 2 (OT)

No. 8 Colorado College (9-4-1)
12/06/2024 – No. 8 Colorado College 3 at No. 10 Providence 4
12/07/2024 – No. 8 Colorado College 1 at No. 10 Providence 5

No. 9 St. Cloud State (10-5-0)
12/06/2024 – Omaha 4 at No. 9 St. Cloud State 3 (OT)
12/07/2024 – Omaha 2 at No. 9 St. Cloud State 5

No. 10 Providence (12-3-2)
12/06/2024 – No. 8 Colorado College 3 at No. 10 Providence 4
12/07/2024 – No. 8 Colorado College 1 at No. 10 Providence 5

No. 11 Boston University (8-6-1)
12/07/2024 – RV Massachusetts 4 at No. 11 Boston University 0

No. 12 Cornell (5-3-3)
12/06/2024 – RV Colgate 2 at No. 12 Cornell 3 (OT)
12/07/2024 – No. 12 Cornell 3 at RV Colgate 6

No. 13 Dartmouth (6-3-1)
12/06/2024 – St. Lawrence 3 at No. 13 Dartmouth 2
12/07/2024 – No. 20 Clarkson 3 at No. 13 Dartmouth 2

No. 14 UMass Lowell (10-3-2)
12/06/2024 – No. 3 Boston College 3 at No. 14 UMass Lowell 3 (OT)

No. 15 Minnesota State (12-4-2)
12/06/2024 – Bowling Green 1 at No. 15 Minnesota State 4
12/07/2024 – Bowling Green 2 at No. 15 Minnesota State 3 (OT)

No. 16 North Dakota (9-7-1)
12/06/2024 – No. 16 North Dakota 5 at Miami 4
12/07/2024 – No. 16 North Dakota 4 at Miami 2

No. 17 Ohio State (11-4-1)
12/05/2024 – RV Penn State 0 at No. 17 Ohio State 4
12/06/2024 – RV Penn State 2 at No. 17 Ohio State 4

No. 18 Quinnipiac (8-6-1)
12/06/2024 – Rensselaer 1 at No. 18 Quinnipiac 3
12/07/2024 – RV Union 1 at No. 18 Quinnipiac 3

No. 19 Arizona State (8-7-1)
12/06/2024 – Minnesota Duluth 3 at No. 19 Arizona State 5
12/07/2024 – Minnesota Duluth 2 at No. 19 Arizona State 3 (OT)

No. 20 Clarkson (11-5-2)
12/06/2024 – No. 20 Clarkson 4 at RV Harvard 3
12/07/2024 – No. 20 Clarkson 3 at No. 13 Dartmouth 2

RV = Received Votes

SATURDAY COLLEGE HOCKEY ROUNDUP: No. 4 Minnesota shuts out No. 6 Michigan for second straight night; No. 1 Michigan State rallies from 2-0 for OT win at Wisconsin; UMass PP puts away No. 11 BU; No. 2 Denver gets OT win for series split with No. 7 WMU

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For the first time since 1943, No. 4 Minnesota shutout No. 6 Michigan on back-to-back nights, completing the weekend sweep with a 2-0 blanking of the Wolverines (Photo: Jim Rosvold)

Certainly Michigan, one of the nation’s top college hockey programs, doesn’t get shutout on back-to-back nights too often. Well, the last time that rival Minnesota did that, Franklin D. Roosevelt was the president.

Eighty-one years after, the No. 4 Gophers once again completed that feat, shutting down the No. 6 Wolverines for the second-straight night, 2-0, blanking a Michigan team that two weekends ago scored 16 goals in two games against Penn State.

The year was 1943 the last time Minnesota whitewashed a weekend with the Wolverines. After Saturday’s 6-0 victory, Saturday required a first-period goal from Sam Rinzel on the power play and an empty-net tally by Jimmy Snuggerud for the decisive weekend sweep.

Minnesota improves to 8-0-0 in Big Ten play.

Goaltender Liam Souliere 22-save shutout on Saturday followed crease mate Nathan Airey’s 32-save blanking on Friday.

Minnesota improves to 15-2-1 overall, while Michigan drops to 10-5-1 having lost three of four games.

POLL | PAIRWISE | SCOREBOARD | STANDINGS

No. 1 Michigan State 3, Wisconsin 2 (F/OT)

The top-ranked Spartans rallied from 2-0 down and Isaac Howard scored with 2:00 remaining in overtime to help Michigan State split the weekend series at Wisconsin, 3-2.

Wisconsin still earns four-of-six points on the weekend against the nation’s newly-minted No. 1 team after Friday’s 4-0 victory.

The Badgers seemingly were writing a similar script to Friday early in the rematch. Owen Lindmark gave Wisconsin a 1-0 lead on the power play with 3:42 remaining in the first and Christian Fitzgerald extended that advantage at 3:16 of the second.

Michigan State finally struck on the power play in the second when Charlie Stramel, a transfer from Wisconsin, scored in the building he used to call home.

Joey Larson knotted the game at 2:24 of the third to set up Howard’s heroics.

Massachusetts 4, No. 11 Boston University 0

UMass took advantage of a penalty-plagued game by No. 11 Boston University, scoring three times on the power play to post a 4-0 shutout of the Terriers to win the opening game of a two-game home-and-home series.

They two clubs will faceoff again in Amherst on Wednesday.

Boston University was whistled for 46 minutes worth of penalties, including majors to both Cole Hutson and Brandon Svoboda. The Svoboda major proved most costly for the Terriers, who allowed two power play goals during the five minutes at the end of the second period to give UMass a 3-0 lead.

Daniel Jencko, Lucas Olvestad and Kenny Connors all notched power play tallies for the Minutemen and Ryan Lautenbach, who gave UMass the 1-0 lead early in the first, scored what turned out to be the game-winner.

Michael Hrabel earned the shutout by making 32 saves.

No. 20 Clarkson 3, No. 13 Dartmouth 2

It was a lost weekend for No. 13 Dartmouth, which followed up a loss at home on Friday against St. Lawrence with another defeat at the hands of No. 20 Clarkson, 3-2. Dartmouth has now lost three straight games after staring the season 5-0-1.

Clarkson finished its ECAC weekend with back-to-back wins having defeated Harvard, 4-3, on the road on Friday.

The Golden Knights never trailed on Saturday jumping to leads of 1-0 on Tristan Sarsland’s goal at 12:01 of the first and a 2-1 advantage when Ellis Rickwood scored at 9:45 of the second.

Dartmouth drew even late in the middle frame when Hayden Stavroff scored.

But Aryton Martino’s goal with 2:55 remaining in regulation was the game-winning goal.

Clarkson improves to 5-1-0 in the ECAC and sits just a single point behind first-place Quinnipiac, which posted a pair of 3-1 victories over Rensselaer and Union on the weekend.

No. 2 Denver 3, No. 7 Western Michigan 2 (F/OT)

Second-ranked Denver rallied from deficits of 1-0 and 2-1 with Samu Salminen tying the game with 1:06 remaining in regulation and Carter King netting the overtime game-winner as the Pioneers avoided a weekend sweep in Kalamazoo with a 3-2 victory.

Western Michigan won in regulation on Friday, 3-2, thus taking four of the six NCHC league points against the defending national champions over the weekend.

Alex Bump and Grant Slukynsky tallied for the Broncos while Zeev Buium had the remaining goal for Denver.

 

November HCA men’s awards go to Boston College’s Leonard, Michigan’s Hage, Colorado College’s Mbereko, Minnesota State’s Tracy

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From left, Ryan Leonard, Michael Hage, Kaidan Mbereko, Alex Tracy (photos: Boston College Athletics, Michigan Athletics, Colorado College Athletics, Minnesota State Athletics).

The Hockey Commissioners Association has announced its monthly men’s honors for November.

Boston College sophomore forward Ryan Leonard is the player of the month, Michigan forward Michael Hage is rookie of the month, and Colorado College junior Kaidan Mbereko and Minnesota State junior Alex Tracy are co-goaltenders of the month.

While playing the hardest schedule in the NCAA, Leonard led the country in goals (8), game-winning goals (4), and shots on net (52), while powering the Eagles to a 7-2-0 record. His 13 points were second in the nation and he was third with a plus-nine rating. No player in Hockey East had more goals, points, or game-winning goals.

Hage led all rookies in the nation with 1.43 PPG as the Wolverines went 7-1, playing against ranked squads, including Boston University and Western Michigan. Had the game winner vs. WMU.

Mbereko averaged 28 saves per game in a 5-2-1 month for No. 8 CC. Had a .941 save percentage and 1.71 GAA.

Tracy had great numbers of 1.23 and .955 while averaging 26.5 saves per game. Allowed zero or one goal in six of eight games. Had 43 saves in only loss in the month (1-0 at Bemidji State).

Princeton’s Wunder, Alexander, Northeastern’s Jönsson, Wisconsin’s McNaughton garner November women’s honors from Hockey Commissioners Association

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From left, Issy Wunder, Mackenzie Alexander, Lisa Jönsson and Ava McNaughton (photos: Princeton Athletics, Northeastern Athletics, Wisconsin Athletics).

The Hockey Commissioners Association has announced its monthly women’s honors for November.

Princeton junior forward Issy Wunder is the player of the month, Princeton forward Mackenzie Alexander is rookie of the month, and Northeastern junior Lisa Jönsson and Wisconsin sophomore Ava McNaughton are co-goaltenders of the month.

Wunder racked up a phenomenal 12-10-22 line in nine games (2.44 PPG) for the Tigers. Keyed a 4-3 win over No. 5 Colgate with 1-1-2 and finished the month with a five-goal effort at Stonehill.

Alexander went 5-17-22 in nine games, going 3-5-8 in four games against top-15 opponents. Had six assists in final game at Stonehill.

Jönsson went 4-1 with numbers of .980 and 0.60, with three games against ranked opponents. Currently leads the nation with .964 and 1.01 on the year.

McNaughton’s line: 6-1, 1.20, .956. Includes two shutouts against No. 8 St. Cloud State and a 31-save, 4-2 win at No. 2 Ohio State.

FRIDAY COLLEGE HOCKEY ROUNDUP: Wisconsin blanks No. 1 Michigan State, No. 7 Western Michigan edges No. 2 Denver, No. 10 Providence downs No. 8 Colorado College, No. 14 UMass Lowell ties No. 3 Boston College, St. Lawrence beats No. 13 Dartmouth

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Wisconsin players mob Owen Mehlenbacher after his goal Friday night on home ice against Michigan State (photo: Wisconsin Athletics).

Down goes No 1.

Wisconsin used a 26-save shutout from goaltender Tommy Scarfone to help defeat top-ranked Michigan State 4-0 Friday night at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis.

Quinn Finley scored twice for the Badgers, while Owen Mehlenbacher and Tyson Dyck also scored.

https://www.twitter.com/BadgerMHockey/status/1865225389783515271

The loss snaps the Spartans’ nine-game winning streak.

Michigan State goalie Trey Augustine finished with 22 saves in the loss.

POLL | PAIRWISE | SCOREBOARD | STANDINGS

No. 7 Western Michigan 3, No. 2 Denver 2

Western Michigan took a 3-0 lead into the third period and while Denver scored twice in the final stanza, the Broncos held on for a 3-2 win at Lawson Ice Arena in Kalamazoo, Mich.

https://www.twitter.com/TheNCHC/status/1865210617071648815

Tim Washe, Matteo Costantini and Zack Sharp scored for the Broncos and Cameron Rowe made 29 saves in goal.

For Denver, Jake Fisher and James Reeder scored and goalies Matt Davis and Freddie Halyk combined on a 24-save effort.

No. 3 Boston College 3, No. 14 UMass Lowell 3 (OT, UMass Lowell wins shootout)

Mirko Buttazoni scored twice as UMass Lowell played to a 3-3 tie with Boston College at th Tsongas Center in Lowell, Mass.

The River Hawks won the subsequent shootout.

https://www.twitter.com/RiverHawkHockey/status/1865206401813168131

Girts Silkalns also scored for UMass Lowell and Beni Halasz made 16 saves between the pipes.

Andre Gasseau, Mike Posma and Gabe Perreault netted the BC goals and Jacob Fowler stopped 26 shots in goal.

No. 4 Minnesota 6, No. 6 Michigan 0

Matthew Wood scored two goals and goaltender Nathan Airey stopped all 32 shots he faced as Minnesota shut out Michigan 6-0 at 3M Arena at Mariucci in Minneapolis, Minn.

https://www.twitter.com/GopherHockey/status/1865217673904140434

Jimmy Snuggerud, Aaron Huglen, August Falloon and Connor Kurth added goals for the Gophers.

Michigan netminders Logan Stein and Cameron Korpi made 33 saves.

Omaha 4, No. 9 St. Cloud State 3 (OT)

Sam Stange was the overtime hero for Omaha, scoring at 1:48 of extra time to lift the Mavericks to a 4-3 win over St. Cloud State from the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in St. Cloud, Minn.

https://www.twitter.com/NCAAIceHockey/status/1865250599790370996

Zach Urdahl scored two goals, Jimmy Glynn one, and goalie Simon Latkoczy made 31 saves in net for the Mavericks.

Tyson Gross scored two goals for SCSU, Warren Clark the other, and James Gray turned aside 25 shots in goal.

No. 10 Providence 4, No. 8 Colorado College 3

Four different players scored as Providence picked up a 4-3 win over Colorado College at Schneider Arena in Providence, R.I.

https://www.twitter.com/FriarsHockey/status/1865211419609706730

Trevor Connelly, Logan Sawyer, Hudson Malinoski and Tomas Machu scored for the Friars and Philip Svedebäck made 29 stops in goal.

For the Tigers, Drew Montgomery, Chase McLane and Gleb Veremyev scored and goalie Kaidan Mbereko finished with 25 saves.

No. 12 Cornell 3, Colgate 2 (OT)

Charlie Major’s goal at 2:58 of overtime completed a three-goal comeback and lifted Cornell to a 3-2 win over Colgate at Lynah Rink in Ithaca, N.Y.

https://www.twitter.com/CornellMHockey/status/1865241927697715473

Jack O’Leary and Ryan Walsh also scored for Cornell and Ian Shane made eight saves in goal for the Big Red.

For the Raiders, Brett Chorske and Ryan Spinale scored and goalie Andrew Takacs finished with 28 stops in the Colgate crease.

St. Lawrence 3, No. 13 Dartmouth 2

Nicholas Beneteau’s goal at 4:41 of the third period stood as the game winner as St. Lawrence held on for a 3-2 win over Dartmouth at Thompson Arena in Hanover, N.H.

https://www.twitter.com/SkatingSaints/status/1865211257642451007

Felikss Gavars and Tyler Cristall also scored for the Saints, while goalie Mason Kucenski made 29 saves.

For the Big Green, Hayden Stavroff and CJ Foley found the back of the net and Roan Clarke finished with 16 saves between the pipes.

No. 15 Minnesota State 4, Bowling Green 1

Minnesota State used four different goal scorers to defeat Bowling Green 4-1 from the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center in Mankato, Minn.

https://www.twitter.com/CCHAHockey/status/1865216643892154486

Adam Eisele, Brian Carrabes, Luke Ashton and Kaden Bohlsen scored for the Mavericks and goalie Alex Tracy made 20 saves.

Adam Zlnka scored for the Falcons and Cole Moore finished with 20 saves of his own in the Bowling Green net.

No. 16 North Dakota 5, Miami 4

North Dakota got third-period goals from Cody Croal (14:37), Jayden Perron (18:17) and Sacha Boisvert (19:37) to complete the comeback and down Miami 5-4 at Steve Cady Arena in Oxford, Ohio.

https://www.twitter.com/UNDmhockey/status/1865223533460107435

Jackson Kunz and Dalton Andrew added goals for the Fighting Hawks and TJ Semptimphelter made 13 saves in goal.

For the RedHawks, Raimonds Vitolins, Ryan Sullivan, Johnny Waldron and Michael Feenstra scored and Ethan Dahlmeir and Bruno Bruveris combined on a 33-save effort between the pipes.

No. 17 Ohio State 4, Penn State 2

Four different players scored for Ohio State as the Buckeyes took a 4-2 win over Penn State at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio.

https://www.twitter.com/OhioStateMHKY/status/1865233144560963923

Damien Carfagna, Riley Thompson, Jake Rozzi and Max Montes scored for OSU and Kristoffer Eberly made 27 saves in goal.

Penn State’s goals came from Dylan Lugris and Tyler Paquette and goalie John Seifarth finished with 29 saves.

No. 18 Quinnipiac 3, Rensselaer 1

Andon Cerbone, Travis Treloar and Jack Ricketts scored to lead Quinnipiac to a 3-1 win over Rensselaer at M&T Bank Arena in Hamden, Conn.

Quinnipiac goalie Dylan Silverstein made 17 saves.

Jimmy Goffredo broke Silverstein’s shutout bid at 14:16 of the third period.

Rensselaer goalie Noah Giesbrecht recorded 32 saves.

No. 19 Arizona State 5, Minnesota Duluth 3

Ty Jackson and Dylan Jackson each scored as Arizona State dropped Minnesota Duluth 5-3 at Mullett Arena in Tempe, Ariz.

Cullen Potter, Ryan Alexander and Sam Court also scored for ASU with Luke Pavicich making 35 saves in goal.

Dominic James posted a pair of goals for UMD, Max Plante added a goal, and Klayton Knapp and Zach Sandy combined on a 23-save performance in goal for the Bulldogs.

No. 20 Clarkson 4, Harvard 3

Ayrton Martino scored two goals and Ethan Langenegger made 25 saves as Clarkson edged Harvard 4-3 at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center in Boston, Mass.

Talon Sigurdson and Luka Sukovic added goals for the Golden Knights.

For the Crimson, Casey Severo, Marek Hejduk and Cam Johnson scored and Ben Charette made 36 saves in goal.

Colorado College at Providence, Big Ten, NCHC games highlighted for Dec. 6: USCHO Edge college hockey podcast Season 3 Episode 8

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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 December 6, 2024:

  • Denver -154 @ Western Michigan +120; over/under 6
  • Minnesota Duluth +150 @ Arizona State -195; o/u 6
  • Colorado College +114 @ Providence -145; o/u 5
  • Michigan +114 @ Minnesota -145; o/u 6.5
  • Michigan State -210 @ Wisconsin +160; o/u 5.5
Our “pizza money” game:
  • Colgate +270 @ Cornell -375; o/u 5

Subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, in your favorite podcast app, or on Spreaker.

Check out all of USCHO’s podcasts, including USCHO Weekend Review and USCHO Spotlight, plus our entire podcast archive.

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NCAA D-III Men’s Hockey Weekend Picks

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Trine takes on St. Norbert in a battle of unbeaten teams this weekend. (Photo provided by Trine Athletics)

Only a few weeks until Christmas. But for now, we have another week of hockey to unwrap. Let’s take a look at some of the games on tap and make some predictions.

St Norbert (11-0, 6-0) vs. Trine (9-0-1, 5-0-1)

This isn’t a national championship matchup, but boy, it might feel like one as the Green Knights come in ranked No. 2 in the nation while the Thunder are seventh in the USCHO.com poll.

St. Norbert is off to its best start ever, sitting at 11-0, and they have been nothing short of impressive. No team has scored more than a goal against it since Nov. 22, and offensively, St. Norbert has scored five or more goals seven times.

Liam Fraser has already scored 13 goals while Logan Dombrowsky has tallied eight to go along with 15 assists.

Trine has won its last five games and has allowed just two goals in its last three outings.

Michael DiPietra has helped lead the way offensively, scoring once and dishing out seven assists. Sam Antennucci has tallied four goals and three assists.

This is the first time these two teams have met as top 10 teams, and something has to give.

I expect two very close games. Could even see an overtime game in the mix. And while it won’t surprise me if Trine steals a game here, I’m going with the home team.
St. Norbert, 4-3 and 5-4

Adrian (5-3, 2-2) vs. Marian (4-4, 2-2)

This is a big matchup for both teams and Marian comes into this with a one point edge on Adrian in the standings.

The sixth-ranked Bulldogs have the luxury of playing this series at home and that might ultimately make the difference.

Adrian hasn’t played in two weeks and has won its last two. It will look to get the offense going early behind Ian Amsbaugh, who has scored four goals and come up with 10 assists.

The Sabres are looking to snap a two-game losing streak. Daunte Fortner has been a key player for them, tallying three goals and four assists. This should be an interesting series. Marian has a chance to make a statement here.
Adrian, 5-2; Marian 3-2

Lawrence (3-6-2, 2-3-1) vs. Aurora (6-2, 4-2)

The Spartans are looking to get back on track after dropping their last two and will open this series on the road. Landry Schmuck is having a great year for the Spartans, scoring seven times and dishing out two assists as well. Aurora comes in ranked fifth in the country.

The Vikings haven’t won in their last five games, so facing a ranked team might not be the easiest way to get back in the win column. But this team has played hard and has proven it can compete with anyone. It lost an overtime game to Adrian earlier this season.
Aurora, 4-1 and 3-0

WIAC

Friday

UW-Stout (4-3, 1-1) at UW-Stevens Point (4-3, 1-1)

The Blue Devils have yet to win away from home this year, dropping their last two, and they face a big test on the road against the No. 13 team in the country.

Nicolas Pigeon has been a go-to player for Stout, racking up seven goals this year while also recording three assists.

Stevens Point is unbeaten at home, winning all three of those contests, and is looking to keep that streak intact.

Dawson Sciarrino has played a pivotal role in the team’s success, tallying three goals and seven assists.
UW-Stevens Point, 4-2

UW-Superior (4-3-1, 1-1) at UW-River Falls (6-1, 2-0)

Ranked 10th in the nation, the Falcons come in on a three-game winning streak and look to keep that momentum rolling.

Brennan Boynton has played well in goal for River Falls and is a two-time WIAC Player of the Week. He has a 1.43 goals against average. River Falls has a chance here to maintain its hold on first place in the conference.

The Yellowjackets are 4-0 on Friday nights this season an hope that trend can continue as they take aim at an upset.
UW-River Falls, 5-2

Saturday

UW-River Falls 6-1, 2-0) at UW-Eau Claire (2-5-1, 1-1)

Six Falcons have tallied at least two goals this year, with Dylan Smith paving the way with five. That offensive strength should work in River Falls’ favor on the road.

The Blugolds have lost two in a row and have had a challenging start to the year. They have dropped three of their last four overall, scoring only a goal in each of those three losses. But with Max Gutjahr in goal, Eau Claire is always going to have a shot, and he’ll have to be at his best against a strong Falcons attack.
UW-River Falls, 3-1

MIAC

Friday and Saturday

Augsburg (3-6, 1-3) vs. Gustavus (4-3, 3-1)

No team is hotter than Gustavus right now, which has won four in a row after an 0-3 start. The Gusties are atop the MIAC going into this home and home series, and Marko Belak has been a big part of the success, recording two shutouts.

The Auggies have lost their last four, but this is a team you can never count out. Graham Harris has had a lot of success early in the year, scoring three goals and dishing out six assists.

It won’t surprise me if Augsburg prevails here, but I’ll go with the team on a roll at the moment.
Gustavus, 3-2 and 4-3

Concordia (4-5, 1-3) at Saint Mary’s (4-3, 2-0)

Saint Mary’s has won its last three, outscoring the opposition 13-3 during that stretch. It looks to keep things rolling this weekend against the Cobbers.

The Cardinals have gotten a big boost from Colin Tushie, who has tallied either a goal or assist in every game this season. Look for him to play a key role again this weekend.

Concordia has struggled lately, dropping four in a row, and it won’t be easy trying to get back in the win column against a hot Cardinals team. The Cobbers need to get their offense going to have a chance as they’ve managed only 21 goals so far.
Saint Mary’s 5-2 and 4-1

 

 

This Week in NCHC Hockey: Not dwelling on sweep at hands of Arizona State, Denver moving ahead with Western Michigan series, ‘a great challenge’ for Pioneers

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Aidan Thompson has been an offensive juggernaut this season for DU (photo: Tyler Schank/Clarkson Creative Photography).

Not that Denver coach David Carle isn’t a sentimental person, but he’s generally more interested in looking ahead than back.

His Pioneers have had a week and a half to stew on their first two defeats of the season, at home to new NCHC member Arizona State. A last-minute ASU goal Nov. 22 snapped Denver’s recent 21-game winning streak, one victory shy of tying a program record from 1968. The Sun Devils then got hot over the final 40 minutes of the series, winning 5-2 in the rematch.

Coming out of that series, ASU coach Greg Powers told reporters he wished his team was playing again the following weekend, so as to help keep the Sun Devils’ momentum going. Second-ranked Denver was off last weekend, too, and by the time the Pioneers play again this Friday at No. 7 Western Michigan, Carle’s group will have handled its business as usual.

“You play the schedule that you’re given and you find a way to make it work, but certainly having to chew on (the losses to ASU) for a longer time, you can say that that’s good because it gave us more time to work on things, but also bad because you didn’t get an opportunity to make it right,” Carle said. “I’m indifferent to it. I don’t think it really matters.

“The guys have been good and engaged (in practice since then), and no different. We knew there would be bumps in the road during the year, and we’re just trying to use it in a way to propel our growth, and we have another good team we’re playing this weekend, and we’ll try and play better. Even if we play better and do everything right, we’re still playing a great hockey team in Western Michigan, so results aren’t guaranteed in this league, and you have to earn it every night and every weekend.”

In suffering its first home series sweep since January 2020, Denver couldn’t overcome the pace and intensity of an Arizona State team that had begun picking up steam following an early-season spell with injuries to several key players.

Many things went right for the Pios in that series, though. They’ve now scored power-play goals in 11 consecutive games, junior forward Aidan Thompson increased his career-best point streak to 14 games (10 goals, 12 assists) and sophomore Sam Harris’s 11th goal of the season placed him in a tie for first nationally with Boston College’s Ryan Leonard.

Denver might need that duo and many others to click this weekend if the Pioneers are to get back to winning ways against a WMU team that has won three of its last four games. The Broncos are fresh off a home-and-home split with No. 6 Michigan.

“They’re really good and they have no holes in their game, so it’s just living in the battle, shift-to-shift and period-to-period, and sticking to the script,” Carle said. “I think we got off-script a little bit against Arizona State in different moments, and they made us uncomfortable and forced us into those situations, and for us, it’s about staying connected with and without the puck.

“It’s going to be hard, and that’s our league. It’s a shift-to-shift challenge and being engaged physically and mentally throughout your whole game is going to be critical, so for us, playing in a tough environment, it’s going to be a great challenge.”

And for as much as Denver would be glad to start building a new lengthy winning streak this weekend, don’t expect Carle to keep count.

“We care about hanging national championship banners,” Carle said of his program, which has won a NCAA-record 10 national titles and two under him, including last season’s. “I don’t care about winning streaks.”

D-II/III East Men’s Hockey Game Picks – December 5, 2024

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Utica will look to carry momentum from winning their Thanksgiving tournament into a battle of ranked teams for the top of the UCHC on the road against Geneseo this weekend (Photo by CNY Hockey Report)

The action so far this season has been fantastic with games featuring lots of goals or very few, blowouts and overtime thrillers and some terrific tournament surprises as we saw last weekend in the east. It seems like the schedulers have also left some of the most interesting matchups for the virtual last weekend of the semester. Whether it is Hobart v. Elmira, Utica v. Geneseo, Wilkes v. Stevenson,  or Curry v. UNE there are a host of significant games to pay attention to as the first half winds to a close. Must play hard to the end and a win against a key conference rival, or two would be a great close to the semester.

My weekly picks finished last week at 9-5-0 (.643) which keeps me in the hunt for my goal of a 70% success rate overall. To date, my season numbers are 40-20-2 (.661) which is not bad but will face some challenges piking the tough matchups this week. I certainly would like to close my December picks (very few teams playing next week) with a solid slate of winners and may have my own request for Santa if I struggle to close on a high note. It has been a great ride for the first half and this weekend will just make the expectations for the second half so much higher – here are this week’s picks for the east:

Thursday, December 5, 2024

Plymouth State v. Massachusetts-Dartmouth

This game is going to be tight largely due to the rivalry and the home-ice advantage the Corsairs hold in the tight confines of Hetland Arena. This one comes down to the final five minutes of regulation and a much needed ENG for the final margin – PSU, 4-2

Framingham State v. Anna Maria

The AmCats are enjoying a terrific start to MASCAC play but shouldn’t take the Rams lightly. Ashton Collazo and the rest of the visitors can score when given the opportunity so all important for the hosts to be physical and pressure the full 200-feet – Anna Maria, 5-2

Friday, December 6, 2024

(8) Curry v. University of New England

This series comes on the heels of both teams looking for more over the Thanksgiving holiday. Home-and-home series will have significant implications on the CNE standings. Thinking a likely split for the weekend but the Nor’easters need an overtime session to take game one – UNE, 3-2

Stevenson v. (12) Wilkes

The Colonels host the Mustangs in a battle between two key contenders for the MAC conference title. Can’t win the conference in December but important points and potential tie-breaker considerations certainly matter before the end of the semester. Special teams make a difference in a veryfast and physical contest – Wilkes, 3-2

(11) Elmira v. (1) Hobart

This series has traditionally been played in the second half of the season and both teams have been playing great hockey so expect a very competitive contest between the in-state rivals. The Cooler is a tough environment for all opponents and the students will need a mental break from finals prep. Raucous crowd and early goals help Statesmen to a close win – Hobart, 3-1

Tufts v. Colby

The Jumbos certainly have the firepower upfront to play and score against anyone including the Mules. Key for Pat Norton’s squad will be in the blue paint where Gustave Bylin seems to be rounding into form after his MVP performance in the North Country Tournament. Big saves when it matters most help the visitors to the win and three-points – Tufts, 5-3

Potsdam v. Buffalo State

This SUNYAC contest features a pair of teams that really need to end the semester on a positive trend. That said, the Bengals are always very good and most comfortable at home and that makes the difference in a one-goal win – Buffalo State, 3-2

(3) Utica v. (4) Geneseo

The new challenger to Utica’s recent UCHC dominance is a very battle-tested Knights squad that loves playing on home ice. Why does this one feel like a playoff game? Because it is going to be played like one with both coaches wanting the best of their squads a sign for future opportunity down the road. Pioneers steal one in overtime – Utica, 3-2

Saturday, December 7, 2024

Arcadia v. Lebanon Valley

The Knights have had some time off over the Thanksgiving holiday while the Flying Dutchmen have been playing some very competitive hockey. Always good to be rested especially when you know you have to leave it all on the ice two more times before the break. Knights rally for the win – Arcadia, 4-2

Norwich v. Southern Maine

The Cadets have had a difficult time scoring goals this season as evidenced by a 1-0 win and a 2-0 loss last weekend in the LayerEight Shootout. The Huskies will be a very tough opponent but also suffer the brunt of the visitors finding their scoring touch in a much needed win – Norwich, 4-3

Albertus Magnus v. (9) Trinity

The Falcons love this matchup and have had some success in the past against the Bantams. Trinity seems to have found their game after a sluggish start in NESCAC play. Close game comes down to a timely goal, or two and a timely save, or two for the home team – Trinity, 3-2

Franklin Pierce v. Southern New Hampshire

The Penmen have played some very good hockey heading into December and would like nothing better than to capture some important NE-10 points from the visiting Ravens. Power-play goals come in bunches for the home team in a comfortable win – SNHU, 5-2

Oswego v. (14) Cortland

The Red Dragons certainly come into the weekend with some positive momentum having success in splitting games with Curry in last weekend’s series. Oswego continues to show the maturation of its young roster and while they score enough to win, the home team does them one goal better – Cortland, 5-4

Potsdam v. Fredonia

The Blue Devils look to continue their momentum from the Skidmore tournament against a Bears squad desperate for any points on the weekend. Home team finds some early goals for a lead that only gets bigger in the final period – Fredonia, 5-2

Manhattanville v. Chatham

The Valiants would love to find some road magic against the Cougars and earn some key points against a tough UCHC foe. Special teams are a big factor in this game where the visitors find success on the power play for the win – Manhattanville, 5-4

Nichols v. Wentworth

The Bison and Leopards both want to show the CNE is not just a three-team race and that the balance of the conference is deep. Key wins and points are a must in the final games of the semester where the visitors find some scoring magic to steal a big win on the road – Nichols, 5-4

The semester break is right around the corner, and this is the final weekend for many teams in the region. Such great matchups with significant implications for the New Year and rankings in the region. It really doesn’t get much better than this – “Drop the Puck!”

This Week in CCHA Hockey: Mullahy finding groove in Michigan Tech crease, just wants to be ‘reliable rock back there in the net’ after replacing Pietila in junior, college

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Derek Mullahy has been strong in net this season for Michigan Tech (photo: Michigan Tech Athletics).

When Derek Mullahy arrived in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for his first year of USHL junior hockey in 2019, he knew the Roughriders were going to be looking for a goaltender.

Their previous netminder had just been a workhorse for them in the previous, playing in 47 games and leading them to a Clark Cup playoff berth with a 2.30 goals-against average, but left to play for a college team in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

That goalie, if you haven’t guessed it already, was Blake Pietila.

Pietila would go on to become one of the top goaltenders in Michigan Tech history. In 141 games, his GAA (2.12) and save percentage (.920) are No. 2 on the Huskies all-time leaderboard.

But after five seasons in Houghton, Mich., Pietela graduated.

The Huskies needed an experienced goalie. Once again, Mullahy was ready to come into a situation where his team was in need of a goaltending option in the wake a of a departed Pietila. After exhausting his eligibility at Harvard, where he played in 30 games over three seasons, the Massachusetts native was looking for a place where he could step in and get a chance to compete for a starting job.

He found that place in Houghton.

“I wanted to play at a place that I would have the biggest chance to play, a program that had some history, and a [program] that was a national contender. The last three or four years they have been in the tournament, and they’ve had a really good history of goaltenders going to the next level, whether that be professionally in the United States or overseas,” Mullahy said in a phone interview on Tuesday. He added that having an opportunity to replace Petila twice is “coming full circle.”

“It’s definitely big shoes to fill, and I know the fans, after seeing him for four years, expect solid goaltending every night, and what I’ve been planning to do,” he said. “Blake was obviously a great goalie here, and I’m just trying to do my best to be that same kind of reliable rock back there in the net. Just trying to do whatever I can to stop the puck for my team.”

So far, Mullahy has done just that. In eight starts for the Huskies (who are now 7-4-1 overall), Mullahy is 4-3-1 with two shutouts, a 1.86 goals-against average and a .931 save percentage. And although he was splitting time with junior Max Vayrynen early in the season, an injury to Vayrynen has meant that Mullahy has been Tech’s primary goalie for now, starting in each of the Huskies last four games (against Minnesota State and Bowling Green).

“He’s been solid. He didn’t give up one on Friday, and on Saturday, they didn’t beat him,” Michigan Tech coach Joe Shawhan said when asked about Mullahy in his weekly press conference. “They didn’t beat him with a shot all weekend except on the penalty shootouts. He got beat on a backdoor play that we were set to cover and didn’t… And then the other one was a goofy bounce off the boards.”

The Huskies beat Bowling Green 3-0 on Friday but then tied 2-2 on Saturday and lost the shootout.

“He never got beat with a shot on the weekend, and you can’t ask anything more out of a goaltender,” Shawhan said.

Mullahy said it took him a little while to settle in to the U.P. and life in Houghton, but he credits his experience with helping him finally find his rhythm.

“My first two years, I played a decent amount of games, but didn’t really have a chunk of the work until last year,” said Mullahy, who played in more games combined in 2023-24 (19) than he did in his first two seasons for the Crimson (17). “And then just being able to bring that experience over here, when we’re in a tight game, just having that experience behind me that I could close a game down.”

Mullahy’s numbers in 2023-24 weren’t great–a 3.14 goals against and a .897 save percentage–but he’s been able to be more calm playing for Michigan Tech this season.

“The preparation I had over the summer, being on the ice pretty much every day, allowed me to work very hard on my craft,” Mullahy said. “I’ve been trying to change my game into being a more athletic goaltender. I’ve also gotten better at calming down instead of hitting the panic button when things go wrong. I think all that work has been paying off.”

Mullahy is also still getting used to the CCHA. Figuring out some of the tendencies of opposing players and teams has been fun for him.

“I wouldn’t say the CCHA and the ECAC are too different, actually, but it’s been really cool to go into all these different rinks and play these teams I’ve never played before,” he said. “I would say the teams in the CCHA are definitely more physical and it’s more of a physical game out there than playing ECAC teams. But I think the CCHA is a great league for goalies. I think I see a lot of shots in games, and there are also a lot of skilled players.”

The Huskies host St. Thomas this weekend–another team Mullahy has never faced in his college career.

“I think sometimes playing a team for the first time can be maybe a benefit to the goalie, just because the other team hasn’t played me yet so they don’t know my tendencies and they don’t know, for example, that they might have scored on me a certain way the last game, and don’t know my weaknesses or anything,” he said. ”I’m looking forward to it. I’ve never played. St. Thomas before, so I’m so excited to do it and see what they bring.”

Women’s Division I College Hockey: The PodKaz Episode 31 – Princeton’s 25-goal week and Ohio State’s Makenna Webster stops by

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The Dec. 5, 2024, episode of the PodKaz takes a look at a week in which Princeton outscored opponents 25-2 over three games, with Issy Wunder capping it off with a five-goal performance. Other results last weekend included Clarkson and Yale winning Thanksgiving weekend tournaments and Brown winning the Mayor’s Cup.

Ohio State forward Makenna Webster joins the show to talk about the challenges in playing both ice hockey and field hockey for the Buckeyes.

And we wrap up the show with a look ahead to a series between Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State plus other matchups to watch.

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].

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This Week in ECAC Hockey: Coming off sweep of Ohio State, Princeton overflowing with confidence as Tigers relying on determination, compete level

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Jake Manfre scored two power-play goals and added an assist in Princeton’s 3-1 win over then-No. 12 last Friday night (photo: Shelley M. Szwast).

Ben Syer had been around the block a few times.

The first-year head coach possessed no prior experience as the leader behind the bench of a college hockey program – or at any other level, for that matter – but his 20-year journey through ECAC Hockey rinks made him uniquely qualified for Princeton’s forefront position when it opened during this summer’s offseason window.

Once an untested and untrained assistant for an Atlantic Hockey-level Quinnipiac team, he’d burnished a reputation as Rand Pecknold’s recruiting coordinator during the team’s conference switch to ECAC. A later 2011 switch to Cornell subsequently continued a profile elevation as one of NCAA Division I’s best defensive wizards, so despite the perceived lack of head coaching experience, the Tigers found themselves with a hiring coup when they brought him aboard for the 2024-2025 season.

He possessed the rare blend of experience under both ECAC and Ivy League umbrellas, and he understood Princeton’s place within the Ancient Eight’s six-pack of hockey programs. He’d finally won the Whitelaw Cup with the Big Red after Mike Schafer’s 14-year drought ended in 2024, and he’d helped solder the foundation for Quinnipiac’s dynastic explosion over the past decade. All that remained was an anticipated step forward and, for the Tigers, a potential return to the glory experienced during 2017’s magical run to the conference championship.

This past weekend, a pair of wins over No. 12 Ohio State might have just planted the first flags and first seeds of that success.

“They have a great team,” said Syer of the opponent swept out of Hobey Baker Rink. “Just looking at that program and what they’ve done over a number of years, our guys knew the entire weekend would be a battle that [required] us to compete from start to finish. That was something that was evident within our group because it was trying at times and we had some adversity that we had to face, but that part of competing, that determination, never wavered from our guys.”

Princeton already had Syer’s first head coaching win in its back pocket when the Buckeyes arrived in New Jersey for a two-game stint at the century-old barn located a short walk’s distance from the university’s venerated greenspace at Poe Field and Pardee Field, but the two wins encapsulated the growth occurring in the aftermath of the four-point road trip to Yale and Brown.

On both nights, a hard-charging road team with nine wins in its first eight weeks charged at the Tigers’ multi-goal lead with limited successful supply, and on both nights, the late-game heroics from the scarlet-and-gray visitors required the historic orange-and-black team to dig its heels into its own end.

On Friday night, an early 1-0 lead in the first period waited until the closing seconds of the second before opening into a two-goal lead, but a mid-period goal from Ohio State’s Joe Dunlap closed halved the gap before Jake Manfre’s second power play goal of the game caused the comeback’s house of cards to collapse on itself.

One night later, the inverse occurred when the Tigers found themselves nursing a 3-0 lead before a five-minute major, 10-minute misconduct and subsequent holding penalty – all assessed to the same player – began a stretch that saw Princeton kill off approximately 11:30 worth of penalty-riddled game time before the third period’s horn.

“To be quite honest, 15 minutes [of power play hockey] is something that I’m not sure I’ve ever been a part of,” Syer laughed. “I told our guys that we prepare for a lot of things, but you don’t really prepare to kill 11 of the final 15 minutes [of a game]. I give our guys a lot of credit because they battled hard right down to the end. It was an interesting third, but they handled the ebbs and flows as things went along.”

That’s more or less the theme now emerging through a stretch that’s seen Princeton’s first eight games operate under a flag of remarkable consistency. It hasn’t always produced wins, but even the outlier performances of a pair of five-goal defensive performances were decidedly off-set by the team’s performances in its three wins.

Offensively, averaging two goals per game is nearly equal to the 2.5 goals per game allowed, and shot totals are neatly balanced between 25 shots taken and 27 shots allowed on an average basis. Power plays are aligned with five goals scored against six allowed, but one empty net goal places Princeton’s over-advantage analytics at a clean 50-50 break while special teams, even with the 17 minutes assessed on one play in one game, is borderline equal with five more penalties taken than given.

Leading scorers are even harder to distinguish because the players atop the statistical scoring sheets aren’t necessarily scoring the biggest goals in any one game. Brendan Gorman still sits in the team’s top spot with three goals and three assists, but his goal from this past weekend’s Saturday game was his first strike since scoring twice in the opening three games. That said, his two assists in Friday’s game complemented Manfre’s scoring touch while David Ma and Noah de la Durantaye joined them as the team’s multi-goal scorers.

Six other players have at least one goal for a team that produced three 10-goal scorers last year, and both Arthur Smith and Ethan Pearson posted similar statistics in their near-even timeshare in net. They’ve each saved within range of one another with Pearson’s numbers skewing longer because of dueling 29-save performances against Harvard and Brown.

“You certainly know the type of student-athlete that’s here [at Princeton],” said Syer. “The commitment that’s required day-in and day-out to the complete student-athlete experience is something that was always very attractive, so getting to know these guys and their level of commitment [to this program] is something that’s been very, very attractive [to a coach].”

Yet nothing truly prepared the nation for the shock of watching Princeton score back-to-back victories over a mighty Big Ten powerhouse.

Maybe it was because last year’s schedule, albeit in a different era, opened with the Tigers inverting their results after sweeping Brown and Yale with a win over Cornell before losing both games at Ohio State, but the wins over the Buckeyes seemingly continued a conversation regarding the overall success of Ancient Eight programs within the ECAC power structure. They didn’t necessarily move Princeton up through the league’s standings, but the victories pushed the Tigers into the top half of college hockey despite a later start than literally every other team on the national landscape.

Along with Cornell and Dartmouth, the push to fill the void vacated by Quinnipiac’s .500 start landed the league two victories over a team currently situated along the national tournament bubble and centered another possible dark horse into a conversation that largely omitted it during last year.

“When you’re in something, it’s always going to be different than what you see as a perception,” said Syer. “Princeton isn’t vastly different from what I expected, but the day-in and day-out have probably changed it a little bit. Working at an Ivy League school for the past 13 years, you know there are different parameters that are in place, but having those understandings about the type of student-athlete that will have success, [finding what] motivates them is part of the differences [of different teams].”

Princeton returns to the ice this weekend when it hosts Union and Rensselaer in conference play before a three-week break into the holiday season. Three non-conference games then bookend the New Year’s Day holiday with a road trip to Army West Point preceding two home games against New Hampshire.

Michigan State’s Nightingale talks No. 1 Spartans, path to success: USCHO Spotlight college hockey podcast Season 7 Episode 5

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Michigan State men’s hockey head coach Adam Nightingale joins hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger.

Nightingale discusses the promising start to the season and the factors contributing to the team’s early success. He highlights the unity and depth of the team, his approach upon taking over the program, and the importance of focusing on the present rather than past performances. Nightingale elaborates on the development of key players and addresses areas for improvement and upcoming challenges.

Nightingale also comments on broader changes in college hockey recruitment and the impact of Munn Ice Arena renovations on fan engagement. The episode concludes with insights into the support system and camaraderie within Michigan State’s athletic department.

Subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, in your favorite podcast app, or on Spreaker.

Check out all of USCHO’s college hockey podcasts, including USCHO Weekend Review and USCHO Edge, plus our entire podcast archive.

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This Week in Atlantic Hockey America: Scoring touch, lockdown defense coming to life as Holy Cross finding ways to build winning streak

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Mack Oliphant has been playing well on the Holy Cross back end this season (photo: Rob Branning Photography).

We’re past Thanksgiving, which means it’s OK to start looking at the PairWise rankings.

At least that’s what my friends say. Here’s some early analysis from the USCHO Weekend Review podcast as well as our Tuesday Morning Quarterback column.

If you follow Atlantic Hockey America, one quick peek is all you need. The highest-ranked AHA team is Bentley in 29th place. With the league’s dismal .242 winning percentage in non-conference games, it’s clear that for the 12th consecutive season, Atlantic Hockey will only send its playoff champion to the NCAA tournament.

That means the regular season takes on a larger role than for most other conferences because it’s all about getting the best seed possible in a winner-take-all postseason tournament to determine the lone NCAA tournament team.

Last weekend’s convincing 6-1, 4-1 Holy Cross sweep of Sacred Heart, the preseason coaches pick to win the league, could loom large for postseason seeding.

Bill Riga’s team had previously split a pair of 2-1 games with SHU, but only took 2 points in the series because the Crusaders’ win was in overtime. This sweep means Holy Cross took eight of twelve possible points from Sacred Heart this season.

“We had played twice before earlier and both were one-goal games,” said Riga. “We went through a stretch where we were kind of snakebit in terms of scoring.”

But the Crusaders have found their scoring touch recently, putting up 15 goals in their last three games, all victories.

The winning streak is indicative of the Crusaders playing their best hockey so far, but Riga says things started picking up in a Nov. 15-16 road series against Niagara, despite the results (3-3 tie and 3-2 loss).

“Even though we didn’t get the results, I liked the way we played in that series,” said Riga. “We’ve lost six games by a single goal so far, so I knew we were getting close.”

Senior forward Liam McLinskey scored three of Holy Cross’ five goals in the Niagara series and has stayed hot. The reigning player of the year in Atlantic Hockey had just two goals in his first nine games, but has scored at least one goal in his past seven contests and now has 10 goals and six assists to lead the team.

“Despite not scoring (early in the season), Liam has been our best player,” said Riga. “We knew his shooting percentage was going to improve, and it’s all about confidence. Sometimes you just need one to fall, an empty netter or a shot that goes in off a skate.”

It’s no coincidence that McLinskey getting hot has led to the Crusaders’ recent success.

“He takes the attention of the other team, allowing other guys to have more looks,” said Riga.

Junior forward Devin Phillips (11 points) and defenseman Mack Oliphant (12 points) are off to good starts.

“Devin Phillips has been awesome,” said Riga. “He was injured most of last year. We could tell when he wasn’t in the lineup. He’s scoring but also blocking shots and doing the little things.

“Mack Oliphant has been, day in and day out, one of our top defensemen.”

In net, senior Thomas Gale (2.51 GAA, .919 SV%) has played every minute so far.

“I’ve never been one to start multiple guys (in a rotation),” said Riga.

“He’s one of our best players. Why would I take him out? That said, I like our other two goaltenders and will be looking for opportunities to get them experience.”

Holy Cross travels to American International this weekend for a pair of matinée games. The teams split a series a month ago.

“They found a way to score a goal in the last minute to beat us,” said Riga. “With what they’re going through, it will be interesting to know where their heads are dealing with all this. Looking at them on tape, they seem motivated. They’re letting it all hang out. They have, can, and will be a tough team to play against.”

After that, the Crusaders will be on break until the new year, then play Long Island on December 31 before traveling to Palm Springs, Calif., for the inaugural Coachella Valley Classic Tournament on Jan. 3-4. Omaha, Michigan Tech, and UMass Lowell are the other participants.

“The same company (Oak View Group ) that runs that building (Acrisure Arena) also runs Lowell’s,” said Riga. “(Lowell coach) Norm Bazin and I went to Lowell together and he extended the invitation. It’s a chance to play some teams that we normally don’t see.

“And California in January sounds like a great experience for our players.”

Arcadia showing early ability to challenge in the MAC

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Arcadia forward Drew Iannucci is among the team leaders in points helping the Knights to some early season success in the MAC (Photo by Arcadia Athletics)

Following Arcadia’s impressive sweep of Stevenson in a pair of one-goal games on home ice before Thanksgiving, the Knights have just a weekend series remaining with Lebanon Valley College to close out the first half. A successful weekend would send the Knights into the break at 6-3-2 overall and 5-2-2 in league play which puts them right in the mix of a very competitive first season for the MAC hockey conference that includes a NCAA auto-bid to the national championship tournament.

“It was a great weekend for us against Stevenson,” said first-year head coach Ryan Heickert. “At practice before the Thanksgiving break, I told the team that it doesn’t mean anything if we go out an lose to LVC. We are trying to change the culture here with ethic and hard work becoming the standard. As we have introduced new systems, our execution and consistency in execution are the foundation of success on the ice. The season goes by quickly and we need to take advantage of the opportunities right in front of us if we want to compete for a championship. I think we let some opportunities get away in the ties with Misericordia and Neumann and even the overtime loss against Wilkes. Improving our consistency should help us to be focused against LVC and then being ready to go in the second half.”

Heickert takes over a Knights team having been a player and coach at Neumann where he played for Dominick Dawes and was a teammate and roommate with current Black Knight coach, Mike Heddon. While Arcadia’s proximity geographically in Pennsylvania was certainly an attraction to taking the job, so too was the opportunity to build a successful program at school where ice hockey is still a relatively new sport.

“I learned from coach Dawes that being even-keeled means having a big ability to stay calm and focused when things are not necessarily either,” stated Heickert. “He also said you never really know about your talent and the team until you get them on the ice in their first game. I think we are still a work in progress but getting better every practice and every game with the chance to end the first half of the season on a very positive run.”

Ironically, Arcadia’s only two home games of the first half schedule were the two 4-3 wins over Stevenson prior to Thanksgiving. While the home record is unblemished on the small sample size, there is room for improvement on the road where the Knights are 1-3-2 so far this season.

“It certainly is an unbalanced schedule when you look at the first half and our home vs. road games,” noted Heickert. “I think one of the keys for us after the semester break will be the first five games where we play four in a row at home against two SUNYAC opponents in Morrisville and Buffalo State before getting back to MAC play against Alvernia and then a mid-week game at Wilkes before coming home to face King’s. Just the five MAC games in a 10-day window will be really impactful on our record and trajectory in the conference. The part of the schedule is about 20% of the total so we want to be ready to play and get results to close the semester and then be in good shape to compete after the holidays.”

So far this season, the Knights have been getting contributions from several key players on the roster including senior defenseman Jake Frankenfield (5G – 1A – 6Pts), senior forward Donnie Feldman (5G – 4A – 9 Pts) and junior forward Drew Iannucci (4G – 3A – 7 Pts) along with solid goaltending from junior Ryan Burgess (2.78 GAA – .915 SP). While the upper classmen have been key contributors some of the first-year players are making a mark and earning key minutes of ice time as well through their solid play.

“We compete hard in practice and the players know it is an opportunity to show-up well and work hard to earn playing time,” said Heickert. “I think some of our young players have stepped into some quality ice time and important minutes and are developing well for us, particularly on the defensive end with players like Ryan Cunningham, Zach Garnsey, and Wes Sweitzer all working in with our more experienced defensive players. I don’t know that we have found our every-game lineup yet but as the team continues to work hard we have options with our roster that gives us flexibility for the remainder of the season.”

The Knights look to end the first half on a high note when they face the Flying Dutchmen for two games on Friday and Saturday that could send the team off to the break with a lot of positive momentum. Arcadia returns to action after the New Year when they host Morrisville and Buffalo State in their final non-conference games on the schedule.

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: Notre Dame plays ‘best weekend of hockey as a team’ at Friendship Four in Belfast

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Notre Dame played well in the Friendshio Four last weekend, falling in the championship game to BU (photo: Notre Dame Athletics).

When Notre Dame opened Big Ten play against Wisconsin at the start of November, the Fighting Irish carried a 4-2-0 record into the series and improved to 5-2-0 with an OT Friday win.

The following night, the Irish lost 2-1, the first defeat in a string of seven that ended only when they traveled to Northern Ireland for the Friendship Four, where they beat Harvard 5-2 Nov. 29.

In the tournament’s title game, Notre Dame led Boston University 3-1 at the start of the third, but the Terriers scored three unanswered goals in the final 20 minutes – two just 20 seconds apart late in the game – and the Irish fell 4-3.

“I thought we played well both games,” said Notre Dame coach Jeff Jackson. “Slow start, both games, but I thought we came on as the games progressed.

“Just based on how things have gone for us in the first half here, it may have been the best weekend of hockey as a team. In that regard, it was just disappointing in how it finished.”

Jackson, set to retire in 2025 after completing his 20th season behind the Notre Dame bench, said that the season so far has been “frustrating.”

“I really like our guys,” said Jackson. “I like the group. I think we haven’t figured some things out on how we need to play, although this past weekend was probably the closest we’ve been to doing a good job managing the puck and not turning pucks over.”

The weeklong trip was more than just hockey, of course. Hosted by the Belfast Giants of the UK’s Elite Ice Hockey League and held nearly every year since 2015, the Friendship Four has provided a rare opportunity to play abroad for 22 different men’s Division I teams since its inception. Notre Dame is the first Big Ten team to have participated.

“It was a neat experience for the guys, a cultural experience, fun for the staff, too,” said Jackson. “It’s a good event. They run it well. Great crowds.”

Jackson said that this tournament was part of why he wanted to come back for his 20th season at Notre Dame. In 2023, Jackson tried to take his team to Dublin when Notre Dame football traveled to Ireland to play Navy.

“We’d never gone overseas, as a team, and most of the Notre Dame teams go overseas quite regularly,” said Jackson. Had they been able to arrange it in 2023, the hockey team would have attended the football game and try to play an exhibition game or two, but Jackson said the timing was off. “It was the first week of school and we couldn’t miss that much academic time.”

Jackson, who turns 70 next June, said he started thinking seriously about retirement when he saw the way that the transfer portal and NIL were changing college hockey.

“I just knew it was probably going to be a bit of a challenge for us in a number of ways,” said Jackson. “We can’t get transfers in very easily. Grad transfers have been fairly easy [but] undergrad transfers almost impossible. We’ve got a few right now, but it’s a challenge. And the NIL thing.

“They say adapt or die, and I didn’t really adapt.”

Jackson has definite opinions about “the NIL thing.” At first, said Jackson, the university wouldn’t let the team raise money for the NIL, something that’s changed in recent years. Without the opportunity to capitalize on NIL, said Jackson, “We’ve had some really high-end recruits we’ve lost in the last few years,” adding that NIL impacted Notre Dame’s recruiting.

“For me, it’s pay-for-play and if you want high-end kids and you want first-round draft picks, you’re going to have to give them cash,” said Jackson, “and that’s just goes against everything I believe college athletics is supposed to be.”

Jackson supports student-athletes earning money from NIL, but not up-front fees for signing on with a program. “I totally believe that an athlete has the same right as any other student to use his name, image, or likeness to make money,” said Jackson, using former Irish goaltender Ryan Bischel as an example of how he thinks NIL can be used. “He did some bank commercials locally, he ran some camps, and that’s the way it should be.”

Before going to former Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick to discuss retirement, Jackson wanted to make sure that Notre Dame hockey would be in good hands. When looking around for “elite” coaching talent, said Jackson, he turned to Irish alum Brock Sheahan, who’d first been a volunteer assistant at Notre Dame in 2013-14 before spending four years as an assistant at Holy Cross. Sheahan spent four years coaching in the USHL before a year as head coach of the Chicago Wolves (AHL) in 2022-23. The following year, Jackson convinced Swarbrick to hire Sheahan as a third assistant, and when Jackson’s retirement was announced in June, Notre Dame also announced that Sheahan would replace him as the next Irish head coach.

“He’s got all the right tools to be an exceptional coach at this level,” said Jackson. “He’s 40 years old and he’s an alum. Notre Dame’s in his veins. He’s well respected by our guys.

“Part of the reason I did it this way, too, is that I didn’t want to say that I was going to retire at the end of the year and all of a sudden, we’d lose five guys to the transfer portal. It was much easier to make that transition without losing players.”

Jackson cautions that this season “isn’t a farewell tour.” He said, “I just want to get our team back to where we can be.”

The Fighting Irish have a bye week following their trip to Belfast, and the timing is perfect for helping some guys heal a little before Notre Dame travels to Ohio State Dec. 13-14.

“We’ve had three or four other key guys out up front and in the back end, we don’t have the same depth that we’ve had in the past and we’ve had a couple of injuries back there,” said Jackson. “I don’t think we’ve played a game where everybody slated to be in our lineup actually played in a game together since the start of the season.

“We’ve been dinged up and everybody goes through it and I’m not going to use that as an excuse, but it is a factor.”

It doesn’t help that Notre Dame’s leading scorer, Cole Knuble, has missed four games this season. “I think Friday night was the first time he was healthy all season,” said Jackson, “and he got hurt at the end of the game, a different injury.”

Also not helping is the number of penalties the Irish are taking. Notre Dame has averaged nearly 11 penalty minutes per game, 16th in the nation. Notre Dame’s penalty kill is 40th nationally (78.8%).

“It’s been frustrating from a penalty perspective, from a discipline perspective, and it’s been frustrating from a turnover perspective,” said Jackson.

With a 6-10-0 record and just one win in B1G play, Jackson said that the Irish “still have a chance to do something” this season.

“We’re getting the guys to be better,” said Jackson. “This is a group that shows potential. Against BU, they may have won the first and last 10 minutes of the game, but we won the middle 40. We just have to find a way to play for 60 minutes.”

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