Johnny & Matthew Gaudreau 1993/94-2024

 

Michigan's McGroarty Dealt to Pittsburgh

Rutger McGroarty (Michigan) won't be returning to college—or playing for the Winnipeg Jets.

McGroarty, 20, had his NHL rights traded from Winnipeg to the Pittsburgh Penguins for center Brayden Yager. Drafted 14th overall by the Jets following two season with the U.S. National Development Team, McGroarty, a right wing, apparently did not wish to sign with Winnipeg.

A 6-foot-1, 200-lb. native of Lincoln, Neb., McGroarty tallied 16 goals and 36 assists for 52 points in 36 games last season as Michigan qualified for its third straight NCAA Frozen Four. In 75 career outings with the Wolverines over two years, he recorded 34-57—91 points and 12 power-play goals.

Riley to Step Down at Army After Season

Add Army West Point to the list of NCAA Division I men's hockey schools that will be introducing a new head coach following the upcoming season.

Brian Riley (middle, above), a West Point, N.Y. native who has guided the Black Knights since 2004-05, has announced that he will step down as Army's head coach following the 2024-25 NCAA campaign. In 20 seasons at the helm, he has complied an overall 242-359-92 mark, including the 2008 Atlantic Hockey regular-season championship. He has also been named Atlantic Hockey Coach of the Year four times in his career. Riley follows Cornell's Mike Schafer and Notre Dame's Jeff Jackson, who will also retire next spring from their respective positions.

A 1983 graduate of Brown, Riley skated in 97 games in all at forward for the Bears, tallying 28 goals and 35 assists for 63 points. He began his coaching career as an assistant at SUNY-Plattsburgh in 1984-85, before spending one year at UMass Lowell in 1987-88, where he helped the then-Chiefs to the NCAA tournament. He then moved on to Army in 1989-90 and remained there for seven seasons. After a two-year stint as head coach at Shattuck St. Mary's in Minnesota, Riley returned to Army in 1999, where he again served as an assistant to his older brother, Rob, before ultimately taking the head coaching reins himself in 2004.

Riley, 65, is expected to be succeeded by current assistant coach and former Black Knights defenseman Zach McKelvie in 2025-26. It will mark the first time since 1949-50 that a Riley will not serve as the head hockey coach at Army, as Rob Riley guided the Cadets from 1986 to 2004, after father Jack Riley oversaw the program from 1950 to 1986.

Mike Sertich 1947-2024

Longtime men's college hockey head coach Mike Sertich (Minnesota-Duluth) passed away late last week at the age of 77 after battling pancreatic cancer.

A former Minnesota-Duluth defenseman from 1965 to 1969, Sertich went on to coach his alma mater for 18 seasons, from 1982 to 2000. In that time he guided the Bulldogs to two WCHA tournament titles, three WCHA regular-season crowns, and four NCAA tournament berths, including a national runner-up finish in 1984 when he also earned the Spencer Penrose Award as the nation's top collegiate head coach. A four-time WCHA Coach of the Year recipient, he also led UMD to eight seasons with 20 or more victories. He was inducted into the UMD Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005.

A native of Virginia, Minn., Sertich finished his NCAA Division I head coaching career by guiding Michigan Tech from 2000 to 2003, before serving as a volunteer assistant coach at the College of St. Scholastica from 2010 to 2012. His career NCAA head coaching record stands at 375-397-53, while his overall mark at UMD was 350-28-44.

U.S Falls to Canada at Hlinka Gretzky Cup

The United States fell to rival Canada in a 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup semifinal contest last night in Edmonton. 

Sam Spehar, a 2026-27 University of Denver commit, tallied Team USA's lone goal, which cut Canada's lead to 2-1 at the time. 

The U.S., which went 2-1-0 in the preliminary round in Group B, will face Sweden in the bronze medal game today, while Canada will take on Czechia for gold.

ADDENDUM: Canada defeated Czechia, 2-1, while the U.S. fell to Sweden, 6-3.

Gilbert Joins MSU as Third Netminder

Michigan State has added a third goaltender for 2024-25. 

Dolan Gilbert has formally joined the Spartans as a junior, after practicing with them last season. A 6-foot-2 netminder from South Bend, Ind., Gilbert, 23, spent the 2022-23 season at NCAA Division III Concordia University/Wisconsin (NCHA), where he played in seven games, stopping 158 shots over 247 minutes. Prior to that, he played two seasons for the Texas Jr. Brahmas (NA3HL), where he fashioned a 40-7-2 record with a 2.07 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage in 52 total appearances. 

Gilbert will now back up Trey Augustine (23-9-2, 2.96, .915) and Luca Di Pasquo (2-1-1, 2.42, .910), who backstopped MSU to its first-ever Big Ten regular-season and tournament titles last year.