Happy Hockey Halloween 2024

 

Princeton Blanks Waterloo in Exhibition

Princeton University is off to a good start under new head coach Ben Syer. The Tigers blanked Waterloo (Ont.) by a 6-0 count in an exhibition contest on Saturday evening at Hobey Baker Rink.

Princeton got goals from six different scorers, with three of them assisted by Jayden Sisson. Noah de la Durantaye and David Ma set up two goals apiece, while Alex Konovalov posted a goal and an assist. Princeton outshot Waterloo, 42-18, with Tiger goaltenders Ethan Pearson (seven saves) and Arthur Smith (11 saves) combining for the shutout. Dan Murphy finished with 37 stops for the visiting Warriors, who surrendered two Princeton power-play goals.

The result and individual/team statistics will not count in Princeton's official NCAA totals. The Tigers open the 2024-25 season for real at home against ECAC Hockey rival Harvard on Nov. 8 at 7 p.m.

Nanooks Win First Game of Season

Alaska (Fairbanks) finally has its first victory of the 2024-25 NCAA campaign, and it has goaltender Nicholas Grabko to thank for that. 

A transfer from Bentley University, Grabko made 37 stops in Saturday's 1-0 win at Notre Dame, including 20 saves in the second period alone, to gain the series split. Broten Sabo scored the only goal of the penalty-filled contest for the Nanooks midway through the game. The two former CCHA rivals combined for 22 penalties and 87 penalty minutes at Compton Family Ice Arena.

UAF improved to 1-5-0 overall, while UND fell to 3-1-0. Nicholas Kempf made 22 saves for the Fighting Irish. 

Denver, Wisconsin Top USCHO Polls

Defending national champion Denver remains atop this week's men's NCAA Division I hockey poll at USCHO.com, followed by Boston College, Boston University, Michigan State and North Dakota in the top five. DU, BU and UND are all undefeated at this point, while BC and MSU split a two-game series in Michigan last weekend.

In USCHO's women's Division I poll, Wisconsin remains in the top slot with a perfect 6-0-0 record, followed by defending national champion Ohio State (5-2-1), Minnesota, Clarkson and Minnesota-Duluth. Clarkson is also 6-0-0 at this point of the season.

BC Blanks MSU in Season Opener

Will Vote scored twice and Oskar Jellvik added another goal, all in the second period and at even strength, as second-ranked Boston College blanked No. 4 Michigan State by a 3-0 count tonight at MSU's Munn Ice Arena. BC is now 1-0-0 overall on the 2024-25 season, while MSU fell to 2-1-0. 

BC goaltender Jacob Fowler picked up his first shutout of the season, and the fourth of his NCAA career, with 24 saves, while five different Eagles recorded assists on the night. Trey Augustine stopped 26 shots for the Spartans, who were outshot, 29-24, and went 0-for-2 on the power play before 6,555 on-lookers. MSU still leads the all-time series between the two schools, 17-12-1, although BC has now won the last six meetings, including a pair at home last year.

The Eagles and Spartans wrap up their two-game series tomorrow night at Munn (6 p.m. ET, B1G+).

ADDENDUM: In the rematch, MSU got two goals from Wisconsin transfer Charlie Stramel, the game-winner from Daniel Russell late in the second period, and 32 saves in all from Augustine as the Spartans edged BC, 4-3. It was the 600th victory all-time for MSU at Munn, which first opened its doors in 1974. Jellvik had two assists for the Eagles, while Fowler made 25 stops.

Denver Remains Atop National Poll

Defending national champion Denver remained atop this week's USCHO.com NCAA Division I men's hockey poll. The Pioneers opened their 2024-25 campaign with a two-game sweep at former WCHA opponent Alaska Anchorage over the weekend.

Rounding out the top five were Boston College, Boston University, Michigan State and Minnesota. BC opens its season this weekend at MSU, while BU topped Holy Cross in a single game and MSU swept a pair of outings at Lake Superior State. North Dakota, Cornell, Quinnipiac, Wisconsin and Michigan make up the rest of this week's top 10, with only Michigan having played this past weekend in a split with visiting Minnesota State.

Devils Sweep Sabres to Open NHL Season

Paul Cotter (Western Michigan) scored a goal in each game as the New Jersey Devils opened the 2024-25 NHL regular season with a two-step sweep of the Buffalo Sabres in the Czech Republic. The Canton, Mich. native tallied a goal and an assist in New Jersey's season-opening 4-1 win on Friday, and then added another goal in Saturday's 3-1 triumph. Owen Power (Michigan) and Tage Thompson (UConn) scored for the Sabres on the weekend, while Devon Levi (Northeastern) stopped 37 shots on Saturday.

Cotter played in eight games with WMU during the 2018-19 campaign, recording one assist before leaving Kalamazoo to play for London (OHL). He spent the last three seasons with the Vegas Golden Knights, notching career highs of 18 assists and 25 points last year in 76 outings. The Devils return to action at home in Newark on Thursday against Toronto, while the Sabres will visit Los Angeles that evening.

Wisconsin Women Rout BC, 7-1

Casey O'Brien and Kelly Gorbatenko each recorded four points, and Laila Edwards scored two goals as No. 1 Wisconsin improved to 3-0-0 overall with a 7-1 victory over host Boston College. Grace Campbell made 36 saves for BC, which was outshot, 43-16, and fell to 1-1-0 overall. The Badgers now lead the all-time head-to-head series, 10-0-0. The two NCAA Division I women's hockey schools will meet again at 6 p.m. ET tonight at Conte Forum.

ADDENDUM: Wisconsin completed the sweep with a 7-0 victory on Saturday, as O'Brien, Edwards and Lacey Eden registered three points apiece.