Atlantic Hockey Altering Postseason Format

The Atlantic Hockey Association, one of the the six NCAA Division I men's hockey conferences, has shifted its postseason tournament fully to on-campus sites beginning with the 2022-23 season. 

The first round will be best-of-three series, starting with the top eight teams, followed by best-of-three semifinals with the four remaining schools. The single-game championship contest will then be held in mid-March at the host of the highest-remaining seed, similar to what the revamped WCHA did before its demise last year.

Atlantic Hockey, which began play in 2003 after six seasons as the hockey arm of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), had previously held its championship game at such neutral sites as West Point, Rochester, Buffalo and Utica in New York. It has also been held in Hamden, Conn, along with Worcester and Springfield, Mass.

Atlantic Hockey's current roster consists of Air Force, American International, Army West Point, Bentley, Canisius, Holy Cross, Mercyhurst, Niagara, RIT, Robert Morris and Sacred Heart. Robert Morris will not resume on-ice play until the 2023-24 campaign, after the program was dropped and then subsequently brought back, along with its women's program, which competes in College Hockey America. 

AIC has won the last three AHA postseason titles, earning the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament in the process each time. The 2020 AHA tournament was ultimately canceled due to COVID-19.

Colorado Avalanche Claims 2022 Stanley Cup

The Colorado Avalanche are the 2022 Stanley Cup champions. 

The visiting Avalanche overcame an early one-goal deficit to defeat the two-time defending NHL champion Tampa Bay Lightning, 2-1, on Sunday night at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla. Colorado won the best-of-seven series in six games.

It was the first time the Avalanche had won the Cup since 2001, when current general manager Joe Sakic was team captain. Colorado won its first Cup in 1996, less than a year after relocating from Quebec, when the Avs swept the Florida Panthers in four games, winning the decisive contest in triple overtime in Miami. 

Colorado's NCAA contingent this spring included Jack Johnson (Michigan), Erik Johnson (Minnesota), Devon Toews (Quinnipiac), Cale Makar (UMass), Andrew Cogliano (Michigan), Alex Newhook (Boston College), J.T. Compher (Michigan), and Nico Sturm (Clarkson). 

Makar, who had earlier won the Norris Trophy as the NHL's best defenseman, was also honored Sunday night with the Conn Smythe Trophy, as NHL playoff MVP, after recording eight goals and 21 assists for 29 points in 20 games. He had three goals and four assists in the Final.

Chicago Wolves Win AHL's 2022 Calder Cup

Alex Lyon (Yale) stopped all 28 shots he faced, and Andrew Poturalski (New Hampshire) again contributed a goal and an assist as the Chicago Wolves clinched the 2022 Calder Cup as American Hockey League champions. 

Jack Drury (Harvard) had two assists in Chicago's 4-0 win at Springfield on Saturday evening, while David Gust (Ohio State) scored a goal for the visiting Wolves. Charlie Lindgren (St. Cloud State) stopped 26 of 29 shots in defeat for the Eastern Conference champion Thunderbirds.

Chicago rebounded from an opening-game loss in the final with four straight victories, including three in Massachusetts, to win the best-of-seven series, four games to one. It was the first Calder Cup awarded since 2019, with the AHL's postseason competition canceled the past two seasons due to COVID-19. 

Drury finished third among all Calder Cup Playoff scorers this spring with 24 points, on nine goals and 15 assists, while Poturalski was right behind him with 8-15—23 points. Lyon finished 9-3-0 in net with a 2.03 goals-against average and two shutouts in 12 playoff appearances.

It is the third Calder Cup in Wolves' history, with the previous ones coming in 2002 and 2008. Chicago, which began play in 1994 as a member of the now-defunct International Hockey League, also won the Turner Cup as IHL champs in both 1998 and 2000.

Makar, Connor Win NHL Awards

Two former NCAA players were honored earlier this month with season-ending National Hockey League individual awards for the 2021-22 campaign.

Cale Makar (UMass) of the Colorado Avalanche won the Norris Trophy as the NHL's best defenseman. He tallied 28 goals and 58 assists for 86 points in 77 outings with the Avs, and also registered a plus-48 in plus/minus rating.

Kyle Connor (Michigan) of the Winnipeg Jets claimed the Lady Byng Trophy, which is awarded for gentlemanly play. He posted 47-46⁠—93 points in 79 appearances with the Jets, while recording just four penalty minutes on the season.

Maker and the Avalanche will try again to close out the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight (8 p.m. ET, ABC, CBC) in Game 6 of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final. Colorado leads the series, three games to two.

Chicago on Verge of 2022 Calder Cup

Andrew Poturalski (New Hampshire) scored one goal and set up another as the Chicago Wolves moved within a game of winning the Calder Cup with a 4-2 victory over the host Springfield Thunderbirds on Friday night. 

The Wolves lead the best-of-seven AHL final series, three games to one, having won the last three contests following an overtime loss in Game One. Chicago can clinch its first Calder Cup since 2008, and third overall, with a win in Game Six tonight at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Mass.

Lightning, Wolves Claw Back into NHL, AHL Finals

The losers in the previous Stanley Cup and Calder Cup finals games both bounced back on Monday night.

The two-time defending NHL champion Tampa Bay Lightning rebounded from an early deficit—twice, in fact, as an early Colorado goal was disallowed due to an offside—with three consecutive goals en route to a 6-2 win over the visiting Avalanche in Game Three at Amalie Arena. Colorado still leads the best-of-seven series, two games to one.

Ross Colton (Vermont), who scored last year's Stanley Cup clinching goal in the final against Montreal, set up tonight's game-winning goal just 1:26 into the second period, to make it 3-1 Lightning at the time. Cale Makar (UMass) assisted on both Colorado goals. Game Four is Wednesday night in Tampa.

In the AHL's Calder Cup Final, the host Chicago Wolves followed up an overtime loss on Sunday by scoring the first five goals Monday on the way to a 6-2 victory over the Springfield Thunderbirds at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill. Andrew Poturalski (New Hampshire) led the way for the Wolves with a goal and three assists. The best-of-seven series is now tied at one game apiece, and will shift to Springfield, Mass. starting on Wednesday.

Kessel Lifts Springfield to OT Win in Calder Cup Opener

Matthew Kessel (UMass) picked the right time to score his first professional goal. Kessel connected just over five minutes into overtime to lift the visiting Springfield Thunderbirds to a 5-4 victory over the Chicago Wolves on Sunday in the opener of the AHL's 2022 Calder Cup Final.

Jack Drury (Harvard) opened the scoring for Chicago midway through the first period, before Springfield's Matthew Peca (Quinnipiac) set up a goal by Hugh McGing (Western Michigan) and then scored one of his own before the end of the first frame. Drury then assisted on one of two second-period goals, the go-ahead marker by David Gust (Ohio State), to help the Wolves to a 3-2 lead after 40 minutes.

Less than 30 seconds after Chicago made it a two-goal game early in the third stanza, Tommy Cross (Boston College) pulled Springfield back within a goal, before Dakota Joshua (Ohio State) set up the game-tying goal with less than a minute-and-a-half remaining in regulation. Cross then assisted on Kessel's game-winner in sudden-death OT.  

Charlie Lindgren (St. Cloud State) earned the win in goal for Springfield, making 33 saves on 37 shots. Alex Lyon (Yale) took the loss in net for the Wolves, stopping 30 of 35 shots.

Kessel, 21, a defenseman from Bloomfield Hills, Mich., joined the Thunderbirds this spring after finishing a three-year career at UMass. He tallied 23 goals and 28 assists for 51 points and 86 penalty minutes in 100 outings, and was also part of the Minutemen's 2021 NCAA national title team. He notched three assists in 15 regular-season AHL appearances with the Thunderbirds, after being drafted 150th overall by Springfield's parent club, the NHL's St. Louis Blues, in 2020.

Game Two of this year's Calder Cup Final is scheduled for Monday night at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill.

Makar, Avs Rout Lightning in Game Two

Cale Makar (UMass) made up for not having a point or a shot on goal in the opener of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final. by scoring two goals in Colorado's 7-0 rout of two-time defending champion Tampa Bay tonight in Denver. The Avalanche now lead the best-of-seven series, two games to none.

Makar tallied both shorthanded and power-play goals in the third period, after the host Avalanche raced out to a 3-0 lead after 20 minutes on the visiting Lightning, an advantage which ballooned to 5-0 after two periods of play. Alex Newhook (Boston College) and Andrew Cogliano (Michigan) each had two assists on the evening for Colorado, which is now 14-2 in the playoffs so far this spring.

The Avs had won the series opener, 4-3, on Wednesday at Ball Arena, on an overtime goal that was assisted by J.T. Compher (Michigan). Game Three is slated for Monday night at Amalie Arena in Tampa (8 p.m. ET, ABC, CBC).

2022 Stanley Cup Final Starts Tonight

The 2022 Stanley Cup Final gets underway tonight in Denver, when the Eastern Conference champion Tampa Bay Lightning visit the Western Conference champion Colorado Avalanche. Face-off for the NHL's marquee series is slated for 8 p.m. ET (ABC, ESPN+, SN, CBC, TVA Sports).

Colorado's NCAA contingent includes Jack Johnson (Michigan), Erik Johnson (Minnesota), Devon Toews (Quinnipiac), Cale Makar (UMass), Andrew Cogliano (Michigan), Alex Newhook (Boston College), J.T. Compher (Michigan), and Nico Sturm (Clarkson). The Avalanche are seeking their first Cup since 2001.

Two-time defending Stanley Cup champion includes former collegians Brian Elliott (Wisconsin), Alex Killorn (Harvard), Ryan McDonagh (Wisconsin), and Ross Colton (Vermont). Tampa Bay has won 11 straight Stanley Cup Playoff series since the start of the 2020 postseason.

Canada Wins 2022 U18 Women's Gold

Boston University commit Mari Pietersen made 29 saves, and Team Canada held on to defeat the United States, 3-2, on Monday night in the gold medal game of the 2022 IIHF Women's Under-18 World Championship in Madison, Wisc.

Canada jumped out to a three-goal lead before the U.S. responded with back-to-back goals late in the second period. The final 20 minutes were scoreless, giving Canada its second U18 gold medal in seven years, and sixth all-time.

Pietersen is slated to suit up for BU starting this fall, according to eliteprospects.com. The Terriers went 12-15-6 overall last season, and finished sixth in the Hockey East standings.

ECHL's Everblades Win 2022 Kelly Cup

For the first time since 2012, the Florida Everblades are ECHL champions.

The Everblades completed their playoff journey on Saturday night at Hertz Arena in Estero, Fla. with a 4-2 win over the Toledo Walleye in Game Five of the 2022 Kelly Cup Final. Florida won the series, four games to one, to claim the second Kelly Cup in franchise hostory.

Former NCAA players on this year's Everblades playoff roster included: Darik Angeli (Ohio State), Parker Gahagen (Army West Point), John McCarron (Cornell), Jake Jaremko (Minnesota State), Cam Johnson (North Dakota), Lukas Kaelble (Lake Superior State/Clarkson), Ben Masella (St. Lawrence), Chris McKay (RIT), Jake McLaughlin (UMass), Michael Neville (Michigan Tech), Joe Pendenza (UMass Lowell), Nathan Perkovich (Lake Superior State), Zach Solow (Northeastern), Dylan Vander Esch (SUNY Potsdam) and Blake Winiecki (St. Cloud State), 

Johnson earned the June M. Kelly Playoffs Most Valuable Player Award for his performance in net for Florida. He fashioned a 15-3 record in 18 postseason games this spring, along with a 1.90 goals-against average and four shutouts.

GLI Moving to Grand Rapids for 2022

The Great Lakes Invitational is moving west.

For the first time ever, the annual holiday college hockey tournament will be played outside Detroit, as the 2022 version will be contested on Dec. 27-28 at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Mich., home of the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins. 

The semifinals for the 57th incarnation of the GLI will feature Michigan Tech against Western Michigan, and Michigan State versus Ferris State, with the winners meeting on the second day for the title. Longtime GLI participant Michigan, which holds the tournament record with 17 championships, will not be a part of the field for the first time since 1973. 

The GLI began in 1965 at the Olympia in Detroit, before moving to Joe Louis Arena in 1979 and then Little Caesars Arena in 2017. The 2018 version was contested outdoors at Comerica Park, home of Major League Baseball's Detroit Tigers, while the 2020 edition was canceled due to COVID-19. Last year's tournament was held on campus sites, with MSU hosting Western and Tech, and Michigan hosting MTU before the Wolverines bowed out the next night against WMU due to extenuating circumstances. 

MTU won the last regular GLI title in 2019, defeating Michigan in the final.

Van Andel Arena has previously hosted a number of college hockey games, including Ferris State-Michigan State and Michigan-Western Michigan regular-season contests in its first season of operation (1996-97). The facility has also hosted NCAA men's hockey regionals in 1997, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2013. 

Avalanche Win NHL's Western Conference Final

The Colorado Avalanche are going to the Stanley Cup Final, for the first time in 21 years.

Colorado defenseman Cale Makar (UMass) scored the game-opening goal and then set up four others, including the game-winner in overtime, as the Avalanche rebounded from a two-goal deficit to defeat the host Edmonton Oilers, 6-5, in Game Four of the NHL's 2002 Western Conference Final tonight. Colorado swept the best-of-seven series, four games to none. 

The Avalanche are now 7-0 on the road in this year's playoffs. They had won Game Three on Saturday, 4-2, in Edmonton, with J.T. Compher (Michigan) scoring the game-winner in the third period, to take a stranglehold on the series. 

Makar, 23, now has five goals and 17 assists for 22 points in 14 Stanley Cup Playoff contests so far this spring, and 12-41—53 points in 49 career NHL postseason appearances, all with Colorado, after being drafted fourth overall by the Avs in 2017 prior to beginning his college career. In his second and final season at UMass in 2018-19, the Calgary native led the Minutemen to their first-ever NCAA title game, and also won the Hobey Baker Memorial Award as the nation's top college player after tallying 16-33—49 points in 41 outings.

Dylan Holloway (Wisconsin) made his NHL debut tonight for the Oilers, and had one hit and was a plus-one in seven shifts. The 20-year-old Calgary native collected 19-33—52 points in two seasons at Wisconsin, and also helped the Badgers to the 2021 NCAA tournament before turning pro.

The Avs, who won the Stanley Cup in 1996 and 2001 in their only previous Final appearances, will face the winner of this year's Eastern Conference Final between the New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning. New York currently leads that series, two games to one.

UND's Johnson Leads Florida to 2-0 Lead in ECHL Final

Cam Johnson (North Dakota) has backstopped the ECHL's Florida Everblades to a two games-to-none lead in the best-of-seven 2022 Kelly Cup Final.

Johnson, 27, from Troy, Mich., made 29 stops in Game 2 in Ohio last night as the Everblades defeated the host Toledo Walleye, 3-1. He made 33 saves in a 3-2 win in Game One. Game Three will be Wednesday night in Estero, Fla.

Johnson played at UND from 2014 to 2018, and also led the Fighting Hawks to the 2016 NCAA title. He posted a 56-26-12 record with 12 shutouts in 102 career NCAA appearances, to go with a 2.10 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage. He has also played professionally in the AHL with Binghamton, Cleveland and Milwaukee, and in the ECHL with Adirondack.

Makar Boosts Avs Over Oilers in Opener

Cal Makar (UMass) scored a goal and set up three others as the Colorado Avalanche won the Western Conference Final opener, 8-6, over the visiting Edmonton Oilers last night. Colorado leads the best-of-seven series, one game to none, with Game Two slated for Thursday night in Denver.

Makar boosted the Avalanche to a 3-2 lead late in the first period, scoring on a play that was subsequently examined for a potential offside infraction, but which held up as a legitimate goal after video review. Colorado would eventually take a 7-3 lead before the Oilers came storming back in the last half of the contest, getting within one goal before the Avalanche scored into an empty Edmonton net.

Makar, 23, was selected fourth overall by the Avs in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. He has registered 48 goals and 132 assists for 180 points in 178 career NHL regular-season appearances, all with Colorado, and also has 11 goals and 47 points in 46 Stanley Cup Playoff outings to date.

Makar, from Calgary, played two seasons at UMass, recording 21-49—70 points in 75 games over two seasons. He also led the Minutemen to their first-ever NCAA championship game in 2019, just before he turned pro, and just after he won the Hobey Baker Memorial Award as the NCAA's top player. The following season, he won the Calder Trophy as the NHL's top rookie.