BU Parts Ways with Head Coach O'Connell

Boston University is again in the market for a new men's ice hockey head coach.

BU parted ways on Tuesday with former Terriers forward and assistant/associate coach Albie O'Connell, who helmed the Terriers these past four seasons after David Quinn left to coach the New York Rangers in 2018.

O'Connell, 45, led BU to a 58-49-16 record overall in his tenure, including a 19-13-3 overall mark in 2021-22 as they finished tied for fourth in the final Hockey East standings at 10-6-3-5. The Terriers also made the 2021 NCAA Tournament under his watch, where they fell to eventual national runner-up St. Cloud State in an Albany regional semifinal, and then won the 2022 Beanpot Tournament.

O'Connell, a 1999 graduate of BU, skated four years for the Terriers, in which he tallied 42 goals and 66 assists for 108 points in 149 career games. He played three years of professional hockey afterwards before entering the coaching ranks in 2002 with The Berkshire School. He then made collegiate stops at Colby, Niagara, Holy Cross, Merrimack, Northeastern and Harvard as an assistant before returning to his alma mater in 2014.

NCAA Players Already Signing with NHL

The annual exodus of NCAA players to the professional ranks has begun. 

Nearly a dozen skaters with college eligibility remaining have recently signed pro contracts after this year's NCAA regionals, as follows (players listed in alphabetical order by last name): 

Player            Pos.    Yr.    School         NHL Club

Nick Abruzzese    F       So.    Harvard        Toronto 

Ronnie Attard     D       Jr.    W. Michigan    Philadelphia

Ryan Fanti        G       Jr.    Minn-Duluth    Edmonton

Ty Glover         F       So.    W. Michigan    Pittsburgh

Matt Kessel       D   Jr.    UMass          St. Louis

Andre Lee         F       Jr.    UMass Lowell   Los Angeles

Josh Lopina       F       So.    UMass          Anaheim

Jake Sanderson    D       So.    North Dakota   Ottawa

Clay Stevenson    G       So.    Dartmouth      Washington

More to come, obviously ...

Michigan, Minnesota Off to 2022 Frozen Four

The 2022 Frozen Four for NCAA Division I men's hockey is set, and it will be an all-western affair out east, thanks to the addition of two Big Ten schools.

Michigan took an early lead on Sunday, and then held on for a 7-4 victory over Quinnipiac in the regional final in Allentown, Pa.

In Worcester, Minnesota won its first regional since 2014 when it blanked Western Michigan, 3-0.

Michigan will now take on Denver in one semifinal at TD Garden in Boston on April 7, while the other semifinal will feature Minnesota against Minnesota State. 

The two semifinal winners will advance to the national title game on April 9.

NCAA Albany, Loveland Regional Winners Crowned

A pair of one-goal results on Saturday punched the first two tickets to this year's NCAA Division I men's ice hockey Frozen Four.

At the regional final at MVP Arena in Albany, N.Y., Minnesota State made a late first-period goal stand up in a 1-0 win over Notre Dame. The Mavericks, who have now won 17 straight games, will face the winner of tomorrow's Worcester, Mass. regional final between Western Michigan and Minnesota, in one of the national semifinals on April 7 in Boston.

At the regional final at the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland, Co., host Denver overcame a early deficit to oust conference rival, Minnesota-Duluth, 2-1. The Pioneers, who are headed to their fourth Frozen Four in six seasons, will meet either Michigan or Quinnipiac in a national semifinal in two weeks, following the result of tomorrow's Allentown, Pa. regional final.

2022 NCAA Allentown, Worcester Regionals Begin

The other two 2022 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey regionals began on Friday. 

In Allentown, Pa., top-seeded Michigan outlasted American International College, 5-3, while Quinnipiac held on to edge St. Cloud State, 5-4. Michigan will now face Quinnipiac on Sunday at the PPL Center.

In Worcester, Mass., both games went into overtime. Western Michigan earned its first-ever NCAA tournament victory, defeating Northeastern, 2-1, while Minnesota eliminated defending national champion UMass, 4-3. Western Michigan will take on Minnesota on Sunday at the DCU Center.

On Saturday, Denver and Minnesota Duluth will meet in the Loveland, Co. regional final, while Minnesota State and Notre Dame will face off in the Albany, N.Y., regional final.

The four regional winners will advance to the NCAA Frozen Four at TD Garden in Boston on April 7, with the two semifinal winners meeting two days later in the national championship contest.

First Day of 2022 NCAA Regionals Complete

The first day of the 2022 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championship is in the books.

In the East Regional in Albany, N.Y., Minnesota State outlasted, Harvard, 4-3, while in a battle of UNDs, Notre Dame edged North Dakota, 2-1, in overtime. MSU will now meet Notre Dame in the regional final on Saturday at MVP Arena.

In the West Regional in Loveland, Co., Minnesota-Duluth blanked Michigan Tech, 3-0, before host Denver scored late to oust UMass Lowell, 3-2. UMD and DU will now face off on Saturday at the Budweiser Events Center for the right to go to the NCAA Frozen Four in Boston in two weeks' time.

The other two regionals get underway on Friday. In the Midwest Regional in Allentown, Pa., Michigan will face American International at 3 p.m. ET, before Quinnipiac duels with St. Cloud State at 8 p.m. ET. In the Northeast Regional in Worcester, Mass., Western Michigan will battle Northeastern at noon ET, while defending national champion UMass will meet Minnesota at 6 p.m. ET. Games will be televised live on ESPNU or ESPNews.

 

Lindenwood Joining NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey

Lindenwood University will join the NCAA Division I men's ice hockey ranks come this fall, according to an announcement made today by the university based in St. Charles, Mo.

The Lions, who recently won the ACHA Division I national club championship for the fourth time since 2009, will continue to skate out of the 2,500-seat Centene Community Ice Center (CCIC) in Maryland Heights, Mo. Lindenwood has been coached by former NHL defenseman Rick Zombo (North Dakota) since 2012.

Lindenwood iced a women's team beginning in 2011-12, which has competed in the College Hockey America conference since 2012-13. Along with Syracuse, Lindenwood was the only NCAA institution with a Division I women's hockey team that lacked a corresponding men's counterpart.

The Lions become the first NCAA Division I men's hockey program to start up since Long Island University did so in 2020-21. Lindenwood is expected to compete as an independent program, for at least its first season of NCAA competition. Arizona State, which moved from the ACHA to NCAA Division I in 2015, was the last independent to make the NCAA Division I men's tournament, when the Sun Devils qualified in 2019.

NCAA Skaters Dealt at 2022 NHL Trade Deadline

The annual National Hockey League trading deadline has come and gone again, and a number of former and current NCAA skaters changed addresses in the process. The cutoff was Monday at 3 p.m. ET.

On Monday, defenseman Tyler Inamoto (Wisconsin), who just completed his fifth season with the Badgers, was dealt from Columbus to Carolina as part of a deal that involved collegiate blueliner Aidan Hreschuk (Boston College) going from Carolina to Columbus. Veteran NHL center Ryan Carpenter (Bowling Green) was traded to Calgary after spending the past three seasons with Chicago, while fellow veteran pivot Tyler Motte (Michigan) went from Vancouver to the New York Rangers.

Winnipeg acquired forward Zach Sanford (Boston College) from St. Louis, three years after he helped the Blues win their first-ever Stanley Cup. In a separate transaction the previous day, the Jets also re-acquired forward Mason Appleton (Michigan State) from Seattle, which had selected him in last summer's NHL expansion draft.

Zach Aston-Reese (Northeastern) was traded from Pittsburgh after five seasons at forward with the Penguins to Anaheim, while center Andrew Copp (Michigan) went to the New York Rangers after seven seasons in Winnipeg in exchange for forward Morgan Barron (Cornell) and a pair of draft choices. Andrew Cogliano (Michigan), who has skated at forward in the NHL since the 2007-08 season, was sent to San Jose by Colorado in exchange for a fifth-round NHL draft choice in 2024, while 10-year center Riley Nash (Cornell) was sent to two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay by Arizona for future considerations.

Anthony Bitetto (Northeastern) went from the New York Rangers' blueline to San Jose's, while defenseman Justin Braun (UMass) went to New York from Philadelphia, and goaltender Andrew Hammond (Bowling Green) left Montreal's crease for New Jersey's. Alex Biega (Harvard) was dealt from Toronto's defense to Nashville for future considerations, while Colin Blackwell (Harvard) will now center lines in Toronto instead of Seattle, and Troy Stecher (North Dakota) has gone from Detroit's defense to Los Angeles.

Last week, Colorado shipped forward Tyson Jost (North Dakota) to Minnesota in exchange for forward Nico Sturm (Clarkson), while forward Frank Vatrano (UMass) was dealt to the New York Rangers by Florida for draft choices. Colorado also dealt the rights to defenseman Drew Helleson (Boston College) to Anaheim for blueliner Josh Manson (Northeastern) plus a 2023 draft selection.

2022 NCAA Men's Division I Hockey Tournament Field Announced

The field for the 2022 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championship was revealed on Sunday night.

Albany, N.Y. Regional
* [2] Minnesota State (35-5-0)
North Dakota (24-13-1)
Notre Dame (27-11-0)
* Harvard (22-10-3)

Loveland, Colo. Regional
[4] Denver (27-9-1)
* Minnesota Duluth (21-15-4)
Michigan Tech (21-12-3)
UMass Lowell (21-10-3)

Worcester, Mass. Regional
[3] Western Michigan (25-11-1)
Minnesota (24-12-0)
* UMass (22-12-2)
Northeastern (25-12-1)

Allentown, Pa. Regional
* [1] Michigan (29-9-1)
Quinnipiac (31-7-3)
St. Cloud (18-14-4)
* American International (22-12-3)

Records in parentheses ( )
Overall seeds in brackets [ ]
Won conference tournament *

A new twist this year is that each regional will feature an off day between the regional semifinal games and the regional final. 

The full 16-team bracket with game times and listings can be found here. The four regional winners will advance to the 2022 NCAA Frozen Four at TD Garden in Boston on April 7, with the national title game slated for two days later. 

UMass defeated St. Cloud, 5-0, in Pittsburgh last year to claim its first-ever national title.

OSU Wins First NCAA Women's Hockey Title

Ohio State University is at last national champions.

The OSU women's team, which began play in 1999-2000, earned its first-ever NCAA title today with a 3-2 win over Minnesota-Duluth at Penn State's Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pa., in a battle of Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) schools.

The top-ranked Buckeyes (32-6-0 overall) took leads of 1-0 and 2-1, but UMD (27-12-1) came back each time to tie the contest. A score by Quinnipiac transfer Kenzie Hauswirth with just under eight minutes remaining in regulation stood up as the game-winning goal, bolstered by 17 saves from OSU netminder Amanda Thiele.  Paetyn Levis, who tallied an assist to go along with her game-opening power-play goal, was named Most Outstanding Player of this year's Frozen Four.

Emma Soderberg finished with 36 stops for the Bulldogs, who were seeking their sixth NCAA crown all-time despite being outshot, 39-19, on the afternoon. UMD won its last national title in 2010. 

OSU, which has made the last three NCAA tournaments, previously advanced to the Frozen Four in both 2018 and 2021, all under current head coach Nadine Muzerall. The Buckeyes finished this season on a 10-game winning streak, and won 30 or more games in a single campaign for the first time in the program's 23-year history.

2022 Men's Conference Championships Decided Tonight

Following semifinal round games in four of the six NCAA Division I men's conferences yesterday, the conference championship games are set for today:

Atlantic Hockey: Air Force vs. AIC (Utica, NY)

Big Ten: Michigan vs. Minnesota (Minneapolis, MN)

CCHA: Bemidji State vs. Minnesota State (Mankato, MN) 

ECAC Hockey: Harvard vs. Quinnipiac (Lake Placid, NY)

Hockey East: UConn vs. UMass (Boston, MA)

NCHC: Minnesota-Duluth vs. Western Michigan (St. Paul, MN) 

The winners will all receive automatic bids to the 2022 NCAA Tournament that will commence with regional play next weekend. 

In women's NCAA Division I hockey, tomorrow's national title game will feature Ohio State versus Minnesota-Duluth, in State College, Pa. Both schools won by 2-1 counts in semifinal contests on Friday, with OSU outlasting Yale, and UMD edging Northeastern in double OT.

2022 NCAA Women's Frozen Four This Weekend

The 2022 NCAA Women's Frozen Four for Division I ice hockey is set. Minnesota-Duluth, defending national runner-up Northeastern, Ohio State, and first-time national semifinalist Yale make up the field that will skate this weekend in State College, Pa., at Penn State's Pegula Ice Arena.

Third-ranked Northeastern will take on eighth-ranked UMD at 3:30 p.m. ET on Friday, while OSU, the top-ranked team in the nation, will face sixth-ranked Yale at 7 p.m. ET, with both of those games to be televised by ESPN+. The winners will advance to Sunday's championship game at 4 p.m. ET (ESPNU).

Out of the four schools, only UMD has previously won an NCAA title, having done so on five previous occasions (2001-2003, 2008, 2010). The Bulldogs (26-11-1 overall) advanced to this year's semifinals by winning two games, 4-0 over Harvard and 2-1 against Minnesota.

The other three schools all earned first-round byes and had to win once apiece in this year's tournament, which was expanded to 11 teams from the previous eight. Yale (26-8-1) edged host Colgate, 2-1, while Ohio State (30-6-0) clipped visiting Quinnipiac, 4-3, and Northeastern (31-4-2) avenged last year's title game loss with a 4-2 victory over visiting Wisconsin. In the first round, besides UMD's triumph over Harvard, Quinnipiac blanked Syracuse, 4-0, while Wisconsin ousted Clarkson, 3-1.

UMD's Elizabeth Giguère, a graduate transfer from Clarkson, is the second-leading scorer in the nation with 21 goals and 39 assists for 60 points through 38 games. OSU senior defender Sophie Jaques is the NCAA's third-leading scorer, and tops among all blueliners, with 21-38—59 points in 36 contests.

Graduate defender Skylar Fontaine of Northeastern leads all NCAA skaters with 41 assists in 37 outings, while graduate teammate Maureen Murphy is pacing the nation with 13 power-play goals, and graduate goaltender Aerin Frankel has posted a 25-3-2 record with an NCAA-best 11 shutouts in 31 appearances this season to date. Yale graduate forward Tess Dettling is tied for second in the nation with three shorthanded goals.

As a team, OSU leads the nation with 4.72 goals scored per game, and a power play that has a 37 percent success rate, while Northeastern ranks first in the nation with just 1.03 goals allowed per game. Yale has the top penalty-killing unit in the NCAA, clicking at almost 95 percent, and is also tied for the national lead with eight shorthanded scores, while UMD ranks in the top 10 in goals scored per game (3.50) and power-play efficiency (26.6 percent).

Sabres Claim 2022 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic

Vinny Hinostroza (Notre Dame) notched two goals and Tage Thompson (Connecticut) sealed matters with an empty-net tally as the Buffalo Sabres took the 2022 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic from the Toronto Maple Leafs by a 5-2 count outdoors in Hamilton, Ont. on Sunday afternoon.

Hinostroza, who also assisted on Buffalo's first goal of the afternoon, put the Sabres ahead, 3-2, on a bad angle shot just over five minutes into the third period. After Kyle Okposo (Minnesota) helped set up an insurance goal over eight minutes later, Thompson sent a puck into an empty Toronto net with 2:25 remaining in regulation to close out the scoring. It was Thompson's 24th goal of the season, and went along with the assist he drew on Hinostroza's first goal of the day.

Alexander Kerfoot (Harvard) assisted on Toronto's second goal, as the Sabres outshot the Maple Leafs, 38-36, before 26,119 spectators at Hamilton's Tim Hortons Field. The two teams combined to go 0-for-7 on the power play. The Sabres were the first U.S.-based team to participate in the Heritage Classic, in its sixth iteration, and also became the first American club to win what had previously been an all-Canadian event.

BC Bows Out of 2022 Hockey East Tournament

Boston College's 100th men's ice hockey season has come to a close.

The Eagles fell at Northeastern, 3-2, in a Hockey East quarterfinal elimination game at Matthews Arena in Boston on Saturday, after spotting the Huskies a three-goal lead in the second period. BC responded with third-period scores from defensemen Drew Helleson (power play) and Marshall Warren, but could get no closer despite outshooting NU, 48-36, on the night, and 25-9 in the final frame.

Gunnarwolfe Fontaine tallied a goal and an assist for the 11th-ranked Huskies, who got 46 saves from goaltender Devon Levi. Eric Dop made 33 saves for BC in his final appearance for the Eagles, who went 1-for-2 on the power play.

BC finishes the 2021-22 campaign at 15-18-5 overall, while top-seeded NU improved to 25-11-1 and will face Connecticut in the conference semifinals at TD Garden in Boston.

BC Eliminates UNH, Stays Alive in Hockey East

Tyler Ward scored all of New Hampshire's goals, but his Wildcats ultimately came up short in a 4-3 overtime loss at Boston College on Wednesday night in a first-round Hockey East tournament game. BC improves to 15-17-5 overall, while UNH ends its 2021-2022 campaign at 14-19-1.

Marc McLaughlin connected for his second goal of the evening, just under 18 minutes into the extra session, at Conte Forum to boost BC to its fifth win in its last seven outings. Jack McBain and Nikita Nesterenko (shorthanded) also scored for the Eagles, who led 3-1 after 40 minutes of play before Ward scored twice, both times on the power play, in less than seven minutes to knot matters. Eric Dop finished with 44 saves in goal for the Eagles, while Mike Robinson made 23 stops for the Wildcats.

BC will now play at Northeastern on Saturday night in the single-elimination quarterfinal round. The winner will advance to the Hockey East semifinals at TD Garden. The Eagles and Huskies split a home-and-home conference series last month, with the road team winning in each contest. 

Boston College Sweeps UMass in Regular-Season Finale

Boston College completed its 100th regular season in stunning fashion, topping defending NCAA champion UMass both nights in a home-and home-series.

On Friday at BC's Conte Forum, Jack McBain tipped home a shot less than 30 seconds into the third period on a power play that stood up as the game-winner in the Eagles' 2-1 victory. UMass appeared to have tied the contest at the buzzer, but the puck was ruled to have crossed the goal line after time had expired. Bowling Green transfer Eric Dop made 25 saves to earn the win on BC's Senior Night.

On Saturday at the Mullins Center in Amherst, BC completed the two-step sweep with a 4-3 triumph, as Patrick Giles broke a 3-3 tie with less than four minutes remaining in regulation on his second goal of the evening. Dop made a career-high 42 stops in net as BC (14-17-5 overall) won for the fourth time in its last six outings, all in Hockey East play, and helped deny the Minutemen (19-12-2) the 2021-22 conference regular-season crown. The Eagles will now host New Hampshire on Wednesday in a single-elimination first-round Hockey East tournament game.

In other playoff contests, Princeton (8-21-2) saw its season come to an end with a 5-1 loss to Union in the first round of the ECAC Hockey tournament, while Michigan State (12-23-1) closed out its campaign with an 8-0 defeat at Michigan in the quarterfinal round of the Big Ten tournament.

In NCAA independent action, Alaska Fairbanks (14-18-2) completed its regular season with a 5-1 win over visiting Long Island to gain a series split.

Cornell Blanks Princeton in Regular-Season Finale

Cornell men's hockey wrapped up its 2021-22 regular season on Saturday night at Princeton with a 4-0 victory over the host Tigers at Hobey Baker Rink.

A goal by Cornell's Sullivan Mack just 46 seconds into the contest stood up as the game-winner. It was also the first career collegiate goal for the freshman from Anchorage, Alaska.

The score then remained unchanged until late in the second period, when Sebastian Dirven scored for the Big Red, with one of the assists going to New Jersey native Jack Malone. Liam Motley and Kyle Penney (empty-net goal) then closed out the scoring in the third period.

Ian Shane made 23 saves for Cornell in earning his third shutout of the season, while Jeremie Forget had 30 stops for the Tigers. Cornell outshot Princeton, 34-23, on the night, while the two Ivy League teams combined to go 0-for-8 on the power play.

Associate head coach Ben Syer again ran the bench for Cornell on game night, as longtime head coach Mike Schafer continues to recover from COVID-19 complications and cardiac stent surgery.

The 18th-ranked Big Red did not allow a goal on the weekend, having beaten ECAC Hockey frontrunner Quinnipiac the night before by a 1-0 count, thanks to an early goal by Malone and 42 saves in all from Shane. Quinnipiac still finished in first place in the final ECAC Hockey standings, while Cornell wound up in fourth place.

Cornell will be idle next weekend, thanks to a first-round bye in the 2022 ECAC Hockey tournament for finishing in the top four, while Princeton will travel to Union for a best-of-three first-round elimination series.