Alaska Blanks St. Lawrence in Lake Placid

Alaska Fairbanks won its first game since Oct. 18 with a 2-0 victory over St. Lawrence yesterday in the semifinal round of the 2025 Adirondack Winter Invitational in Lake Placid, N.Y.

William Fleet and Michael Citara provided all the offense needed for the Nanooks (3-8-1 overall) with second-period goals, while Lassi Lehti made 19 saves for his first shutout of the season and the third of his UAF career. Colin Winn recorded 23 stops for the Saints (2-12-1) as SLU lost its sixth straight contest.

Alaska will play for the tournament title tonight against Clarkson, a 2-0 winner over UMass Lowell in the other semifinal, at Herb Brooks Arena.

ADDENDUM: The Nanooks claimed the Adirondack Winter Invitational championship with a 3-2 triumph over Clarkson in the title contest. Lehti finished with 21 saves in net, while Citara scored UAF's first two goals and Rylen Roersma tallied the game-winner late in the third period. UMass Lowell took third place by beating St. Lawrence, 7-2.

Hockey Thanksgiving 2025

 

USA Tops CHL in First Round of Prospects Challenge

University of Notre Dame commit Sammy Nelson scored one goal and set up another as the USA National Team Development Program defeated Team Canadian Hockey League, 4-2, on Tuesday night at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary in the first round of the 2025 CHL USA Prospects Challenge. It was the first time the NTDP had defeated the CHL head-to-head in this, the second edition of the tournament 

Boston University commit Brady Knowling made 42 saves in net for the NTDP to earn First Star of the Game accolades. The U.S. also killed off all five CHL power plays on the night. The two squads will complete their two-game series tonight at VisitLethbridge.com Arena, home of the WHL’s Lethbridge Hurricanes, in Alberta (8 p.m. ET, NHL Network).

ADDENDUM: The CHL rebounded from a two-goal deficit to win Game Two by a 4-3 score, but Minnesota-Duluth commit Victor Plante scored just under six minutes into 3-on-3, sudden-death "super overtime" to lift the NTDP to the series victory. 

Michigan Takes Over No. 1 National Spot

Michigan took over the top spot in the USCHO.com NCAA Men's Division I hockey poll this week. 

The Wolverines garnered 42 out of a possible 50 first-place votes to move up from No. 2, after sweeping Ohio State over the weekend. Michigan (13-3-0 overall, 6-2-0 Big Ten) has also scored 83 goals over 16 games, and is averaging a nation-high 5.19 goals per outing.

Former No. 1 Michigan State, which had held the top spot the previous five weeks, dropped to third place after being swept by Wisconsin, which itself ascended from No. 7 to No. 2.

Rounding out the top ten were Denver, Minnesota-Duluth, North Dakota, Western Michigan, Quinnipiac, Penn State and Maine.

Princeton Edges Clarkson, 4-3

Princeton University extended its home winning streak this season to five games with a 4-3 triumph over conference rival Clarkson University last night at Hobey Baker Rink. Tigers junior forward Kai Daniells notched the game-winning goal in the third period, his second straight game-winner and sixth goal of the weekend, to complete Princeton's comeback from a two-goal first-period deficit.

"We've got to make our own breaks," said Princeton head coach Ben Syer afterwards, "to compete and believe in ourselves and do it together."

Owen van Steensel (power-play) and Luke Pakulak scored 48 seconds apart to open the scoring for Clarkson midway through the opening period. Luc Pelletier then scored on a breakaway midway through the second stanza for the Tigers, shortly after he burst out of the penalty box after serving two minutes for tripping.

"That goal gave us a little bit of life, hope, whatever you want to call it," said Syer.

Kevin Anderson tied the contest early in the final frame, before Julian Fachinelli gave Princeton its first lead just under four minutes later. 

"We knew if we stuck to our game, we were too good not to break through," said Daniells post-game. "When we stick to our structure and play our game, we're as good as anyone in the conference."

Daniells then made it 4-2 with less than three minutes left, wristing a shot home from the high slot after skating right to left.

"He has skill," said Syer of Daniells. "When he plays hard, he's a different player, and he earned his goals this weekend. He didn't cheat the game, and he set the tone for the entire team."

Remi Gelinas tallied an extra attacker goal in the final minute to pull Clarkson within one, but Daniells won a faceoff with 1.6 seconds left in Princeton's defensive zone to seal the victory.

"I'm proud of them," said Syer about his team. "They competed and didn't quit. They stayed with it."

Conor Callaghan made 23 saves for the Tigers, and also added an assist on Pelletier's goal. 

"He was good," said Syer of Callaghan, who has started the last five games in net for the Tigers. "He made some timely saves, and he was real good for us."

Shane Soderwall, the 2024-25 NCAA Division III Player of the year at Curry College, stopped 24 shots for the Golden Knights, wo have lost their last five games overall, three of them by two goals or less. 

Princeton outshot Clarkson, 28-26, while the two schools went a combined 1-for-7 on the power play. The Tigers and Golden Knights will meet again on Jan. 30 in Potsdam, N.Y. to complete their season series.

Princeton (5-2-0 overall, 2-2-0 ECAC Hockey) steps out of conference play next weekend for two games at CCHA opponent Bowling Green. Clarkson (4-10-0, 1-5-0) will take part in the Adirondack Winter Invitational in Lake Placid, N.Y., along with Alaska Fairbanks, St. Lawrence and UMass Lowell. 

"It's going to be exciting, " said Daniels, who added that he has friends on this year's Bowling Green squad. "It's some school time off, to get out and play some hockey."

Daniells Scores Five in Princeton Win

Kai Daniells had two goals on the season entering Princeton's game on Friday evening against ECAC Hockey rival St. Lawrence at Hobey Baker Rink. He left with seven.

Daniells, a junior forward from Whistler, B.C., scored five goals to lift the Tigers over the visiting Saints, 7-4. He tallied Princeton's second, third, fourth, fifth and seventh goals, two in the second period and three in the third. His goal with just over three minutes remining in regulation stood up as the game-winner, while his final goal was scored into an empty net in the final minute of play. Tyler Cristall notched two goals on the night for the Saints who lost their fourth straight conference contest.

According to College Hockey News, Daniells is the first NCAA Division I men's hockey player to score five goals in one game since Minnesota Duluth's Mike Connolly did so back on Feb. 5, 2011 in a 6-4 win over Minnesota. UMD went on to win the national title that season. Daniells is also the first Tiger to score five goals in one night since John Cook scored five against Northeastern on Nov. 30, 1962, according to Princeton's athletic web site. 

The Tigers (4-2-0 overall, 1-2-0 ECAC Hockey), who have won four consecutive home games to start the 2025-26 campaign, will now host Clarkson on Saturday evening, while SLU (2-10-2, 1-4-0) will visit Quinnipiac.

Princeton Outlasts Stonehill, 3-2

Luc Pelletier's late second-period goal stood up as the game-winner as Princeton edged independent Stonehill, 3-2, last night at Hobey Baker Rink. It was the first-ever meeting in NCAA Division I men's hockey between the host Tigers, who improved to 3-2-0 overall and 3-0-0 at home, and the visiting Skyhawks, who fell to 1-11-0.

Julian Facchinelli staked Princeton to a 1-0 lead midway through the first period with his first career collegiate goal, but Anthony Galante responded just 24 seconds later for Stonehill. Brendan Gorman put the Tigers up again early in the second stanza, with Pelletier scoring from the right circle later in the period to make it 3-1. Joseph Grainda pulled the Skyhawks within a goal early in the final frame, but couldn't get the equalizer as time ran out with Stonehill goaltender Connor Androlewicz (32 saves) off for an extra attacker.

Conor Callaghan stopped 27 shots for the Tigers, who outshot Stonehill, 35-29. Both teams went 0-for-2 on the power play. 

Stonehill returns to action on Tuesday at home against fellow independent Alaska Anchorage, while Princeton will host ECAC Hockey rivals St. Lawrence and Clarkson next weekend. 

BC Women Drop BU, 5-2, in Opener

Sage Babey scored one goal and set up two others as Boston College topped visiting Boston University, 5-2, tonight in NCAA women's hockey action, in the first game of a home-and-home series.

After BU (2-9-0 overall, 2-4-0 Hockey East) tied the contest at two on a late second-period power-play goal by Lola Reid, BC (6-6-1, 5-2-1) ripped off three unanswered goals over the final 20 minutes for the win at Conte Forum. Grace Campbell stopped 43 shots for the victorious Eagles, while Michelle Pasiechnyk posted 18 stops for the Terriers as BU outshot BC, 45-23.

The two MBTA Green Line adversaries will renew their rivalry Friday night at BU's Agganis Arena.

MSU Hockey Tops Both Polls Again

Michigan State University remained atop the major NCAA Division I men's hockey polls for a fourth straight week. The Spartans earned all 50 first-place votes in this week's USCHO.com poll, and also again topped the USA Hockey poll while garnering all 34 of those first-place ballots.

No. 1 MSU is coming off a two-step sweep of visiting Big Ten rival Penn State over the weekend, winning by 2-1 and 5-0 scores at Munn Ice Arena. Tiernan Shoudy notched the game-winning goal in overtime in the opener, before Charlie Stramel scored two goals and set up two others in the clincher. Spartan netminder Trey Augustine stopped 60 out of 61 shots against on the weekend, including 36 saves for the shutout in the second contest.

MSU (7-1-0 overall, 2-0-0 Big Ten) returns to conference action on Nov. 14-15 with two games at Notre Dame.

Yale Defeats Quinnipiac in Home Opener

Yale University broke a seven-year, 17-game losing streak to its local rival last night, with a 4-2 win over  No. 5 Quinnipiac at venerable Ingalls Rink in New Haven, Conn. The Bulldogs rebounded from a two-goal deficit with four unanswered goals, including the game-winner from captain David Chen with less than four minutes remaining in regulation, to claim their 2025-26 home opener. It was also the ECAC Hockey conference opener for both schools.

After Antonin Verreault  and Charlie Leddy staked the visiting Bobcats to a 2-0 lead just over 10 minutes into the contest, David Andreychuk got the Bulldogs on the board just over three minutes later with his first career collegiate goal. Yale then tied the contest at two apiece on James Shannon's first-ever NCAA goal late in the second stanza.

Chen stole the puck deep in the Quinnipiac zone and scored on a backhand in tight to put Yale up, 3-2, for the first time late in the final frame, before Ronan O'Donnell closed out the scoring on an empty-net tally in the final minute of play. Noah Pak made 25 saves for the Bulldogs (1-1-0 overall, 1-0-0 ECACH) in victory, while Dylan Silverstein had 19 stops for the Bobcats (5-3-2-) in defeat. Quinnipiac outshot Yale, 27-23, and also won 37 out of 56 faceoffs, while the two teams combined to go 0-for-8 on the power play.

The win was Yale's first over Quinnipiac since a 3-2 triumph on Feb. 9, 2018, also at Ingalls Rink. Last night's victory was also the first ever for first-year Yale head coach Joe Howe.

Alaska Ties at Quinnipiac

Alaska (Fairbanks) snapped a four-game losing streak and completed a five-game road trip with a 2-2 tie at No. 5 Quinnipiac on Tuesday night at the M&T Bank Arena in Hamden, Conn. The visiting Nanooks then outscored the home team in the ensuing shootout, three to two, although the result will be officially recorded as a tie for NCAA purposes.

Chris Pelosi opened the scoring for the host Bobcats with a first-period power-play goal. Misha Danylov then tied matters for the Nanooks halfway through the third period, before Ethan Wyttenbach scored just under four minutes later for Quinnipiac. Alaska then knotted the contest again with less than two minutes remaining in regulation on a power-play tally by Peyton Platter, with the primary assist going to Michael Citara. It was the Nanooks' fourth power-play goal in two games, and Citara's fourth assist in that same span.

Lassi Lehti finished with 39 saves in net for the Nanooks, while Matej Marinov made 14 stops for the Bobcats, as Quinnipiac outshot Alaska, 41-16. The Bobcats also won 34 of 57 total face-offs.

Alaska (2-8-1 overall) returns home to face Simon Fraser in an exhibition contest on Saturday, while Quinnipiac (5-2-2) will enter ECAC Hockey conference play on the road at Harvard and Brown this weekend.

Princeton Sweeps Visting Alaska Fairbanks

Princeton University men's hockey started off its 2025-26 campaign with a two-step sweep of visiting NCAA independent Alaska Fairbanks at Hobey Baker Memorial Rink this weekend. The Tigers recorded a 5-2 victory on Halloween night, and followed that up the next night by outlasting the Nanooks, 6-3. It was the first meetings between the two schools since 1985, when Alaska won two games in Fairbanks. This weekend's sweep was Princeton's first to start a season at home since 1955-56.

On Friday, Jaxon Ezman scored back-to-back goals early in the third period to break open the game for the Tigers, who also got a goal and 10 faceoff wins from Kai Daniells. Arthur Smith made 20 saves in net for host Princeton, while Lassi Lehti made 29 stops for the Nanooks, who were outshot, 34-22. 

Saturday's game was tied at one entering the final 20 minutes, before the two sides combined for seven goals. Princeton broke open a 3-3 contest with two goals 10 seconds apart in the final four minutes of play, with Jake Manfre scoring twice in that span, including the game-winning goal and an empty-net tally. Smith finished the night with 26 saves, while Brendan Gorman scored two goals and set up another for the Tigers, who also got three points from Ezman. Freshman goaltender Calvin Vachon finished with 31 saves for Alaska, while Nanook captain Chase Dafoe scored two power-play goals and Michael Citara posted three assists. Alaska, despite scoring three power-play goals in four attempts in the rematch, fell to 2-8-0 overall, while Princeton improved to 2-0-0.

Alaska finishes up a five-game road trip on Tuesday at Quinnipiac, while Princeton will visit Ivy League rivals Brown and Yale next weekend to begin ECAC Hockey conference play.