Splits, Sweeps and a First in NCAA Men's Hockey

It was a weekend for splits, sweeps and firsts in NCAA Division I men's ice hockey, from Oct.21-24.

Michigan fell from the top spot in the national polls after first losing and then winning against Western Michigan in a home-and-home series that saw the visitor triumphing in both instances. Boston College lost to Colorado College on Friday at home, but rebounded to top No. 8 Denver the next night by a 5-1 score.

North Dakota, which defeated Quinnipiac in the 2016 NCAA title game in Tampa, split with the host Bobcats last Friday and Saturday in Connecticut. RIT edged Notre Dame in overtime on Thursday night, before the host Irish responded with a shutout win on Friday. Meanwhile, Merrimack split a home-and-home with Boston University in Hockey East play, while independent Arizona State salvaged a split at Colgate with an overtime win in the rematch.

Elsewhere, Clarkson swept Alaska (Fairbanks), Lake Superior State broomed Union, and St. Cloud State did the same to Wisconsin, with the home team winning in each of those instances. Minnesota-Duluth won both halves of a home-and-home with in-state rival Minnesota, and has now won five of its first six outings overall. Bowling Green earned a win and a tie against Miami, while UMass Lowell did the same versus Michigan State, and Sacred Heart did likewise at Maine.

Finally, Division I newcomer St. Thomas recorded its first-ever win at that level with a three-goal triumph over Ferris State on Saturday after falling to the visiting Bulldogs by a goal the night before.

UAA Tabs Former Seawolf Shasby as Head Coach

Alaska Anchorage has found the seventh head coach in its 40-year hockey history.

Former Seawolf skater Matt Shasby has been chosen as the next head coach of UAA, which has not played a game since March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and university cost-cutting measures, the latter of which resulted in a massive fundraising campaign that has saved the program for the time being. The Seawolves sat out last year and are doing so again this year, while rebuilding their roster for the 2022-23 season. 

Shasby played on defense for UAA from 1999 to 2003, where he tallied 12 goals and 53 assists for 65 points in 127 appearances to go along with 158 penalty minutes. A 1999 draft choice of the NHL's Montreal Canadiens, he won a Clark Cup with the USHL's Lincoln Stars in junior hockey prior to enrolling at UAA. An All-WCHA Second Team selection as a junior, and the team captain his senior year in college, he later captained the ECHL's Alaska Aces in a pro career that spanned 375 regular-season games and included a Kelly Cup title in 2006. He was also named to the ECHL's All-Decade team for 2000-2010. 

Shasby, 41, from Eagle River, Alaska, has coached amateur and high school hockey in the Anchorage area after retiring as an active player in 2012, and had also been serving as vice president of player development for the state of Alaska. At UAA, he succeeds Matt Curley, who left Anchorage in June after three years as head coach of the Seawolves to take over the USHL's Des Moines Buccaneers.

UAA, which began as an independent program in 1979 and made three NCAA tournament appearances in the early 1990s, is an independent again following the dissolution earlier this year of the WCHA, which the Seawolves had called home since 1992-93.

MSU Sweeps Miami at Munn Arena

For the first time in three seasons, Michigan State hockey is 3-1-0 overall.

Following a season-opening split with visiting Air Force two weeks ago, the Spartans played rude host to former CCHA rival Miami (Ohio) this past weekend. MSU swept the Red Hawks by 2-1 and 3-1 scores at Munn Ice Arena on Oct. 15-16, respectively, in a matchup of teams from the Big Ten (MSU) and NCHC (Miami). It was the first meetings of the two schools since the final/original CCHA tournament in March 2013, and the first MSU win(s) over the Red Hawks since March 2012.

Erik Middendorf tallied the game-winning goal for MSU with less than two minutes remaining in regulation in the opener on Friday, while Drew DeRidder preserved the victory by making 35 saves. In the nightcap on Saturday, Jeremy Davidson scored twice for the Spartans, including the game-winner late in the third period, while Pierce Charleson finished with 28 stops in net.

MSU now takes to the road for its next action, a pair of contests at Hockey East opponent UMass Lowell on Oct. 22-23.

BC Honors 2001 Team, Tops NU

 

Boston College honored its 2001 NCAA championship team following the first period tonight at Conte Forum. The current group of Eagles then rebounded to claim a 5-3 win over visiting Northeastern in the Hockey East opener for both schools.

Marc McLaughlin scored twice for BC (2-0-1 overall, 1-0-0 Hockey East), while Jack McBain had three assists and Eric Dop made 22 saves for the victory. Aidan McDonough had two goals for the Huskies (2-2-0, 0-1-0), while Devon Levi had 32 stops. BC scored three times in the third period to break a 2-2 tie after 40 minutes.

BC defeated North Dakota, 3-2, in overtime in Albany, N.Y.. in April 2001 to earn its first national hockey title in 52 years. Nearly two dozen members of that team were presented at tonight's NU-BC contest, and they will also be honored on Saturday night at halftime of the North Carolina State-BC football game at Alumni Stadium.

Harvard's Donato Scores Kraken's First NHL Goal

Ryan Donato (Harvard) made Seattle Kraken history on Tuesday night.

The former Crimson forward tallied the first goal in the expansion NHL franchise's annals, at 11:32 of the second period in Las Vegas. The goal pulled Seattle to within 3-1 at the time, in an eventual 4-3 loss to the host Golden Knights.

Max Pacioretty (Michigan) scored twice for Vegas, and also assisted on the game-winning goal in the third period, less than a minute after the Kraken had come back to forge a 3-3 tie.

The Kraken will now continue its season-opening five-game road trip before returning to Seattle for its home opener on Oct. 23, against the Vancouver Canucks at Climate Pledge Arena.

Augustana, ASU Moving Forward with New Arenas

Last week, Augustana University broke ground on its new arena in Sioux Falls, S.D. that will host an NCAA Division I men's hockey team. The Vikings are slated to begin play at the 3,000-seat Midco Arena in 2023-24.

Late last month, Arizona State University announced that it had finished topping off its own new facility. The hockey Sun Devils are scheduled to move in to the as-yet-unnamed 5,000 seat arena in Tempe, Ariz. beginning with the 2022-23 campaign.

2021-22 NCAA Hockey Campaign Begins

 

The 2021-22 college hockey season is now fully underway.

NCAA Division I men's hockey got started this weekend with several exhibitions, but also a number of regular-season contests. Frozen Four participant Minnesota State swept defending national champion and No. 1 ranked UMass in a pair of games in Amherst, Mass. 

National runner-up St. Cloud State welcomed St. Thomas to the Division I ranks with two wins in St. Paul, Minn. Lake Superior State split two contests at Omaha, while UMass Lowell did likewise at Arizona State and Ferris State did the same in two games against visiting Miami. Air Force posted a win and a tie at Colorado College, while Penn State defeated visiting LIU in their mutual opener on Saturday, with those two teams set to conclude their series tonight in University Park, Pa.

The U.S. Under-18 Team edged Notre Dame and blanked Michigan State, while Boston College topped AIC in another exhibition and Denver demolished club opponent and future NCAA member Lindenwood. Boston University, Michigan, RPI, St. Lawrence, Vermont, Western Michigan and Wisconsin also all won single exhibition outings.

The Division I women's season, which began last month with Colgate sweeping RIT, continued in earnest this past weekend with Boston College sweeping host Penn State. Ohio State brooming host Minnesota, and Boston University doing the same to visiting UNH.