Four NCAA Alumni Named to Hockey Hall of Fame

Four of this year's eight inductees to the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, as announced yesterday, have NCAA ties.

• Jennifer Botterill (Harvard) - Tallied 340 points in four seasons with the Crimson and was a four-time First Team All-America Selection. Also earned gold medals in five World Championships and three Olympic Games with Team Canada.

• Brianna Decker (Wisconsin) - Notched 244 points in four campaigns with Badgers, earning All-America accolades twice while also helping Wisconsin to 2011 NCAA title. Six-time gold medalist at World Championships, while also collecting one gold and two silver Olympic medals with Team USA.

• Duncan Keith (Michigan State) - Played parts of two season with Spartans, then went on to win three Stanley Cups with the Chicago Blackhawks. Earned two Norris Trophies as NHL's best defenseman and the 2015 Conn Smythe Trophy as Stanley Cup Playoff MVP. Played in four NHL All-Star Games, and also won two Olympic gold medals and a World Championship silver medal with Team Canada.

• Jack Parker (Boston University) - Legendary head coach and former BU forward spent 40 years at helm of his alma mater, winning 897 games overall and three NCAA championships with the Terriers. Also guided BU to four ECAC tournament titles and two ECAC regular-season crowns, before winning eight Hockey East regular-season championships and six Hockey East tournament titles, along with 21 Beanpot Tournament trophies. Three-time Spencer Penrose Award winner as the NCAA Coach of the Year.

The HHOF induction ceremony will be held in November.

U.S. Women's Hockey Still Undefeated at 2022 Olympics

The United States women's hockey team is off to a 3-0 start at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing, China. Team USA just added an 8-0 win over Switzerland this weekend to earlier triumphs over the Russian Olympic Committee (5-0) and Finland (5-2).

The Americans, who have outshot their opponents so far by an incredible 180-36 margin, have been led in scoring by Hilary Knight (Wisconsin), Amanda Kessel (Minnesota) and Savannah Harmon (Clarkson), who have each tallied five points through three outings. Knight scored two goals in the shutout victory over Switzerland, as did Jesse Compher (Boston University) and Kelly Pannek (Minnesota).

Team USA will now face rival Canada, which is also 3-0, in its next contest (tonight, 11 p.m. ET, USA Network, TSN 2). It will be a rematch of the 2018 gold medal game in Pyeongchang, South Korea, which the U.S. won, 3-2, in a shootout to earn its first Olympic women's hockey title since the inaugural one was awarded in 1998 in Nagano, Japan. 

The Americans will be playing the rest of the way without one of their staples from four years ago in alternate captain Brianna Decker (Wisconsin). The 2012 winner of the Patty Kazmaier Award as the top NCAA women's hockey player has been sidelined for the rest of this year's Olympic tournament after she suffered a leg injury in the win over Finland.

ADDENDUM: Despite being outshot by almost a two-to-one-margin, Canada strung together three goals in the second period to defeat the U. S., 4-2. and finish first in Group A, while the Americans placed second. Veteran forward Brianne Jenner (Cornell) scored twice for the Canadians, who also got goals from Jamie Lee Rattray (Clarkson) and Marie-Philip Poulin (Boston University). Ann-Renee Desbiens (Wisconsin) finished with 51 saves in net for Team Canada.

2012 NCAA Division I Women's Championship Field Set

The eight-team field is set for the 2012 NCAA Division I Women's Ice Hockey Championship.

The three schools earning automatic bids for winning their conference playoff championship were Boston University (Hockey East), Minnesota (WCHA) and St. Lawrence (ECAC), while the five at-large invitees include Boston College, Cornell, Mercyhurst, North Dakota and Wisconsin. Both Minnesota and Wisconsin have recorded 31victories apiece this season, while Cornell has registered 29 wins.

The four first-round games will be played on March 10 at campus sites. Defending national champion Wisconsin is the top seed in the tournament and will host eighth-seeded Mercyhurst, while second-seeded Minnesota will entertain first-time NCAA participant ans seventh seed North Dakota. Boston University will visit third-seeded Cornell, while St. Lawrence will travel to fourth-seeded Boston College.

The semifinals will be played on March 16 at Amsoil Arena in Duluth, Minn., followed by the national championship contest on March 18. Wisconsin, which defeated Boston University by a 4-1 count in last year's championship game, is seeking its fifth NCAA title, which would tie it all-time with Minnesota-Duluth. The Badgers also claimed Division I crowns in 2006, 2007 and 2009.

Junior forward Jocelyne Lamoureux of North Dakota leads all NCAA Division I women's skaters with 48 assists and 72 points so far this season, while junior forward Brianna Decker of Wisconsin is tops in the nation with 36 goals to date. Senior forwards Bailey Bram and Kelly Steadman of Mercyhurst are tied for the national lead with 12 power-play goals apiece, while Steadman is also tied for first in the nation with four shorthanded tallies.

Junior goaltender Noora Räty of Minnesota (pictured above) has gone 30-5-2 this season with a 1.35 goals-against average and a .940 save percentage, along with a nation-best 10 shutouts. Sophomore netminder Alex Rigsby of Wisconsin sports a nation-best .952 save percentage.