NCAA Hockey Coaching Ranks Changing

The head coaching carousel has begin spinning in NCAA Division I men's ice hockey.

Longtime Ferris State head coach Bob Daniels oversaw the final game of his long career with the Bulldogs' 4-1 loss at St. Thomas in the first round of the CCHA tournament. Daniels, a Michigan State graduate, began coaching FSU in 1992-93 and amassed a 510-625-117 record with the Bulldogs. Included among those numbers were six years with 20 or more victories, three CCHA regular-season championship, one CCHA tournament title, and four NCAA tournament appearances, including a national runner-up finish in 2012.

Rensselaer recently relived Dave Smith of his duties after eight years at the helm of the Engineers, as he compiled an 87-152-19 mark overall. An Ohio State graduate, Smith and his 2019-20 RPI team went 17-15-2 overall and sat fifth in ECAC Hockey at 13-8-1 before the remainder of that season was cancelled by the COVID-19 pandemic. He had previously manned Canisius from 2005 to 2017, taking the Golden Griffins to the 2013 NCAA tournament while also earning one Atlantic Hockey regular-season title and one tournament championship. His career record stands at 259-375-78.

American International's Eric Lang saw his NCAA Division I tenure at his alma mater end with Sunday's 4-3 loss at Holy Cross in the second round of the Atlantic Hockey tournament. The Yellowjackets are reclassifying to Division II beginning next season. In nine years, Lang led AIC to an overall mark of 168-148-33, plus four Atlantic Hockey regular-season championships, three tournament titles and three national tournament appearances, including an upset of No. 1 St. Cloud in the 2019 NCAAs.

Mercyhurst's Rick Gotkin, who has guided the Lakers since 1988-89, has announced that he will retire following the 2025-26 season. The only coach to take a school to the NCAA tournament at the Division I, II and III levels, Gotkin, who played collegiately at Brockport, has fashioned a 611-551-111 record through 37 seasons so far. His ledger includes four MAAC/Atlantic Hockey regular-season titles, three conference tournament crowns, and six NCAA tournament berths overall, plus 11 seasons with 20 wins or more.

NCAA Players Making Mark in NHL Play

Former NCAA players have been making their mark in the NHL recently following Friday's trade deadline.

Joel Farabee (Boston University) scored the only goal of the game Saturday night to lift Calgary to a 1-0 win over visiting Montreal. Charlie Coyle (Boston University) assisted on the game-winning goal that same evening in his first appearance with Colorado, as the host Avalanche defeated Toronto, 7-4, while Brady Tkachuk (Boston University) fired home the game-winner in overtime as host Ottawa downed the New York Rangers, 4-3. Cole Koepke (Minnesota-Duluth), a 2019 NCAA champion, tallied twice in Boston's 4-0 win at Tampa Bay, while Zach Hyman (Michigan) did the same for Edmonton in a 5-4 victory over visiting Dallas. 

Adam Fantilli (Michigan), the 2022 Hobey Baker Memorial Award winner, notched his second career NHL hat trick tonight as visiting Columbus routed the Rangers, 7-3. Chris Kreider (Boston College) tallied a shorthanded goal for the home team, while Jonathan Quick (Massachusetts) made 20 stops in goal for the Rangers. Drew Helleson (Boston College) notched the game-winner as Anaheim upended the visiting New York Islanders, 4-1.

Lastly, defenseman Colton Parayko (Alaska Fairbanks) of the St. Louis Blues will be sidelined until mid-April with a knee injury. He has a career-high 15 goals to go with 20 assists for 35 points in 62 outings so far this season.

NCAA Alums on Move at 2025 NHL Trade Deadline

A number of former NCAA players were on the move before Friday's NHL trading deadline, as listed by last name (per Sportsnet.ca and hockeydb.com), for transactions occurring since March 1:

Player, Position (School) New Team Old Team

Brendan Brisson, F (Michigan) NY Rangers Vegas

Dennis Cholowski, D (St. Cloud) New Jersey NY Islanders

Charlie Coyle, F (Boston University) Colorado Boston

Vincent Desharnais, D (Providence) San Jose Pittsburgh

Brian Dumoulin, D (Boston College) New Jersey Anaheim

Michael Eyssimont, F (St. Cloud) Seattle Tampa Bay

Trent Frederic, F (Wisconsin) New Jersey      Edmonton

Dennis Gilbert, D (Notre Dame) Ottawa Buffalo

Patrick Giles, F (Boston College) San Jose Florida

Jonathan Gruden, F (Miami) New Jersey Pittsburgh

Mark Jankowski, F (Providence) Carolina Nashville

Erik Johnson, D (Minnesota) Colorado Philadelphia

Spencer Knight, G (Boston College) Chicago Florida

Luke Kunin, F (Wisconsin) Columbus San Jose

Ryan Lindgren, D (Minnesota) Colorado NY Rangers

Tyler Madden, F (Northeastern) Minnesota Los Angeles

Marc McLaughlin, F (Boston College) New Jersey Boston

Casey Mittelstadt, F (Minnesota) Boston Colorado

Brock Nelson, F (North Dakota) Colorado NY Islanders

Josh Norris, F (Michigan) Ottawa Buffalo

Thomas Novak, F (Minnesota) Pittsburgh Nashville

Gustav Nyquist, F (Maine) Minnesota Nashville

Craig Smith, F (Wisconsin) Detroit Chicago

Reilly Smith, F (Miami) Vegas NY Rangers

Carson Soucy, D (Minnesota-Duluth) NY Rangers Vancouver

Nico Sturm, F (Clarkson) Florida San Jose

Brandon Tanev, F (Providence) Winnipeg Seattle

Jimmy Vesey, F (Harvard) Colorado NY Rangers

Jake Walman, D (Providence) Edmonton San Jose

Princeton Falls to Brown in ECAC First Round

Princeton University's 2024-25 men's hockey season has come to a close. The Tigers fell, 3-2, at Ivy League rival Brown University tonight in the first round of the 2025 ECAC Hockey championship to finish their first campaign under new head coach Ben Syer.

Princeton took a 1-0 lead in the first period at Meehan Auditorium on a goal by Jayden Sisson, before Ryan St. Louis tied it in the second stanza for the Bears. Two goals by Brown's Tyler Kopff in the third period, the second one an empty-netter, spelled the difference, while Princeton's Kevin Anderson closed out the scoring in the final seconds of regulation with an extra-attacker tally. 

Ethan Pearson made 22 saves in his final appearance for the Tigers, while Lawton Zachler finished with 20 stops for the Bears. Brown outshot Princeton, 25-22, and also won 28 of 54 total faceoffs on the night. Both teams went 0-for-3 on the power play. 

Brown (14-13-3 overall, 9-11-2 ECACH) moves on to face third-seeded Colgate in the best-of-three second round of the ECACs next weekend, while Princeton (12-15-3, 7-12-3) will return to NCAA action at Hobey Baker Memorial Rink in the fall for the 2025-26 season.

BC's Dumoulin Dealt to Devils

Two-time Stanley Cup champion and native New Englander Brian Dumoulin (Boston College) is headed back east.

The veteran NHL defenseman from Biddeford, Maine was acquired by the New Jersey Devils today from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for prospect Herman Traff and a conditional second-round selection in the 2025 NHL Draft. The Ducks will also retain 50 percent of Dumoulin's salary for the rest of the 2024-25 campaign.

Dumoulin, 33, tallied two goals and 14 assists for 16 points in 61 games with Anaheim this season, after skating last winter with the Seattle Kraken. He spent the previous eight years with the Pittsburgh Penguins, winning Stanley Cup titles with them in 2016 and 2017. In 687 career regular-season NHL outings, he has tallied 27-144—171 points, to go along with 4-21—25 points in 81 career Stanley Cup Playoff outings.

The first Maine native to have his name inscribed on the Stanley Cup, the 6-foot-4, 214-pound Dumoulin was drafted 51st overall by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2009 before later having his rights dealt to Pittsburgh. After playing junior hockey with the EJHL's New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs, he spent three seasons with Boston College, recording 11-71—82 points in 123 appearances with BC and earning two All-America selections while helping the Eagles to NCAA championships in 2010 and 2012.

WMU Wins NCHC Regular Season Title

Western Michigan won its first-ever regular season conference title last weekend, claiming the Spencer Penrose Cup as 2024-25 National Collegiate Hockey Conference champion following a win and an overtime loss at North Dakota. 

A charter member of the NCHC in 2013, it was the first-ever conference crown for the Broncos since they won the 2012 Central Collegiate Hockey Association title, after first winning the CCHA championship in 1986. WMU is four points ahead of second-place Arizona State, which has completed its regular season, in the current NCHC standings.

The fourth-ranked Broncos (24-7-1 overall, 17-4-1 NCHC), who began NCAA Division I play in 1975-76 after two years at Division II, close out their regular season this weekend at Miami, and are a lock to make their fourth consecutive NCAA tournament.

Penn State Edges Minnesota in OT

Simon Mack scored on a wrist shot just over three minutes into overtime to lift host Penn State to a 4-3 win over Minnesota in Big Ten action last night before 6,577 on-lookers in University Park, Pa. The No. 15 Nittany Lions also stretched their unbeaten streak, which dates back to Feb. 7, to seven games.

Brodie Ziemer had two assists for Minnesota (23-8-4 overall, 14-6-3 Big Ten), which fought back from 2-1 and 3-2 deficits to force the OT. Former Penn State netminder Liam Souliere made 28 saves for the Golden Gophers, who fell one point behind Michigan State in the race for the top spot in the Big Ten.

Aiden Fink and Jimmy Dowd, Jr. set up two goals apiece for the Nittany Lions (18-11-4, 9-10-4), who also got 31 stops from Arsenii Sergeev. It was also the 400th career collegiate victory for Penn State head coach Guy Gadowsky, the only coach the program has known since it joined the NCAA Division I ranks in 2013. The two schools will close out the 2024-25 regular season tonight in a rematch at Pegula Ice Arena.

ADDENDUM: Behind two goals from Matthew Wood and 30 saves from Souliere, Minnesota defeated Penn State, 5-3, in the rematch on Saturday to claim a share of the Big Ten regular-season crown. Michigan State still earned the first seed and a first-round bye in the conference tournament, while Minnesota will host seventh-seeded Notre Dame and fifth-seeded Penn State will visit fourth-seeded Michigan in the best-of-three quarterfinals next weekend.

BC Back at No. 1 in USCHO.com Men's Poll

Following a sweep at Hockey East rival Vermont last weekend, Boston College is back at the top of the USCHO.com NCAA Division I men's hockey poll, released earlier this week. 

Last week's No. 1, Michigan State, dropped to No. 3 after suffering a tie and a loss in Big Ten play against visiting Penn State, while fellow Big Ten school Minnesota moved into the No. 2 slot. The Big Ten regular-season title will be up for grabs this weekend between MSU and Minnesota.

Rounding out the top ten were Western Michigan, Maine, Denver. Providence, Ohio State, UConn and Boston University. Michigan dropped from No. 9 to No. 11, while Arizona State stayed at No. 12.

Princeton Knots Yale in Home Finale

Princeton closed out its 2024-25 regular-season home slate with a 2-2 tie against ECAC Hockey/Ivy League rival Yale last night. The Tigers claimed the ensuing shootout, 3-2, to earn an extra point in the conference standings, although it is officially a tie game according to the NCAA.

Nick Marciano and Miles Gunty staked the Tigers to a 2-0 lead just past the midway point of regulation, but Micah Berger and Kalen Szeto scored under five minutes apart for the Bulldogs to tie the game by the end of the second period. After a scoreless third frame and five-minute overtime, Princeton won the shootout as Alex Konavalov, Noah de la Durantaye and David Jacobs tallied in the extra session, while Berger and Zach Wagnon connected for Yale. Ethan Pearson finished with 17 saves in net for Princeton, and stopped 3-of-5 attempts in the shootout, while Luke Pearson made 33 stops for Yale. Both teams combined to go 0-for-7 on the power play.

Konavalov, de la Durantaye, Pearson and Jack Cronin were honored pre-game on Senior Night at Hobey Baker Memorial Rink. The Tigers (10-14-3 overall, 5-12-3 ECACH) remain two points ahead of last-place Yale (6-18-3, 5-12-3) in the ECAC Hockey standings, with both schools to wrap up their respective regular seasons next weekend.

45 Years Ago Today in Lake Placid ...

 

Canada Wins Four Nations Face-Off

The first-ever Four Nations Face-Off went to Team Canada. 

The Canadians outlasted Team USA, 3-2, in overtime on Thursday night in the championship game at TD Garden in Boston. Cale Makar (Massachusetts) assisted on the game-winning goal by Connor McDavid. Brady Tkachuk (Boston University) and Jake Sanderson (North Dakota) scored in regulation for the Americans, who also got 24 saves in net from Connor Hellebuyck (UMass Lowell).

Canada thus avenged a 3-1 loss to Team USA in Montreal in the round-robin portion of the tournament, which exclusively featured NHL players. Other former NCAA players on the Canadian squad included Colton Parayko (Alaska Fairbanks) and Devon Toews (Quinnipiac). Sweden finished in third place, while Finland was fourth.

NHL players are expected to represent their respective nations at the 2025 IIHF World Championship in Sweden and Denmark, and at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy.

U.S. To Face Canada for Four Nations Crown

The first-ever Four Nations Face-Off final is set. It will be the United States against Canada at TD Garden in Boston on Thursday night (8 p.m. ET, TNT).

The final matchup was set when Canada held on to defeat Finland, 5-3, this afternoon before Sweden edged the U.S., 2-1, this evening, both in Boston. Chris Kreider (Boston College) scored the lone goal for the Americans, while Jake Oettinger (Boston University) finished with 21 saves for Team USA. Gustav Nyquist (Maine) notched Sweden's first goal.

Thursday will be a rematch of Saturday's 3-1 U.S. win in Montreal. Jake Guentzel (Omaha) scored twice for the Team USA, while Dylan Larkin (Michigan) scored one goal and set up another, and Connor Hellbuyck (UMass Lowell) made 25 stops in net. Sweden took third place overall by virtue of today's regulation win over the Americans, while Finland finished fourth with one overtime win and two regulation losses.

MSU Retakes No. 1 Spot in Men's Poll

Michigan State University is back atop the NCAA Division I men's hockey poll at USCHO.com. The Spartans, who were idle this past weekend, took over the top spot from Boston College, which lost two of its last three games.

MSU received 23 first-place votes, while BC garnered 11 first-place votes and third-place Western Michigan earned 16 such ballots. Rounding out the top ten were Maine, Minnesota, defending NCAA champion Denver, Ohio State, Beanpot champion Boston University, and Michigan. Meanwhile, Wisconsin held on to the top spot in USCHO's Division I women's poll, while Hobart headlined the Division III men's poll, and Wisconsin-River Falls was first in the Division III women's poll.

MSU, which last held the top spot on Jan. 13, returns to action this weekend with two Big Ten home games against Penn State. 

NCAA Skaters in Four Nations Face-Off

The inaugural Four Nations Face-Off gets underway starting Wednesday.

Following are the former NCAA players, all of whom are current NHL skaters, on each of the four rosters (Player, Position, NHL Team, School):

United States

Connor Hellebuyck, G, Winnipeg Jets (UMass Lowell)

Jake Oettinger, G, Dallas Stars (Boston University) 

Jeremy Swayman, G, Boston Bruins (Maine)

Brock Faber, D, Minnesota Wild (Minnesota)

Adam Fox, D, New York Rangers (Harvard)

Noah Hanifin, D, Vegas Golden Knights (Boston College)

Charlie McAvoy, D, Boston Bruins (Boston University)

Zach Werenski, D, Columbus Blue Jackets (Michigan)

Jake Sanderson, D, Ottawa Senators (North Dakota)

Jaccob Slavin, D, Carolina Hurricanes (Colorado College)

Matt Boldy, F, Minnesota Wild (Boston College) 

Kyle Connor, F, Winnipeg Jets (Michigan)

Jack Eichel, F, Vegas Golden Knights (Boston University)

Jake Guentzel, F, Tampa Bay Lightning (Omaha)

Chris Kreider, F, New York Rangers (Boston College)

Dylan Larkin, F, Detroit Red Wings (Michigan)

Brock Nelson, F, New York Islanders (North Dakota)

Brady Tkachuk, F, Ottawa Senators (Boston University)

Canada

Cale Makar, D, Colorado Avalanche (Massachusetts)

Colton Parayko, D, St. Louis Blues (Alaska Fairbanks) 

Devon Toews, D, Colorado Avalanche (Quinnipiac)

Sweden

Gustav Nyquist, F, Nashville Predators (Maine)

Finland

Erik Haula, F, New Jersey Devils (Minnesota)

***

In all, 16 different NHL teams and 15 NCAA schools will be represented in the event. Lists do not include players who were chosen to participate but who will not, due to injury or other issues.

The tournament, which will temporarily replace the NHL All-Star Game, will run through Feb. 20, and will be contested in both Boston and Montreal.

MSU Routs Michigan, 6-1, in Detroit

The "Duel in the D" trophy will remain in East Lansing. Second-ranked Michigan State University routed No. 13 Michigan, 6-1, on Saturday night before 19,515 fans at Little Caesars Arena in the annual contest between the two archrivals in Detroit.

After Tyler Duke tied the game midway through the second period for Michigan, MSU erupted for five goals over the next 21 minutes to put the contest away. Six different skaters scored for the Spartans, who were led by Joey Larson's one goal and two assists. Shane Vansaghi, Gavin O'Connell and Isaac Howard notched a goal and an assist apiece for MSU, which also got two assists from Nicklas Andrews and finished two-for-five on the power play. Trey Augustine made 17 saves in net for the Spartans (22-5-3 overall, 13-4-3 Big Ten), and also added an assist. Cameron Korpi finished with 34 stops for the Wolverines (16-12-2, 10-9-1), who defeated MSU, 2-1, on Friday in East Lansing. 

It was the fourth and final game of the 2024-25 regular-season series between MSU and U-M, with each team winning twice. Their next meeting could come as early as this year's Big Ten tournament, and then possibly again in the NCAA tournament. MSU will entertain Notre Dame this weekend in Big Ten play, while U-M will host Minnesota.

Saints Clip Tigers in ECAC Hockey Shootout

Tyler Cristall scored two goals in regulation, including the game-tying goal with under four minutes remaining, then tallied the only goal in the shootout as St. Lawrence earned an extra point in the standings at ECAC Hockey rival Princeton last night. Officially, the game goes into the NCAA's books as a 4-4 tie.

Princeton fashioned leads of 2-0 and 4-2, with St. Lawrence coming back both times to tie the contest. Jan Olenginski scored from the goal line with 5:30 remaining in regulation to bring the Saints within 4-3, before Cristall connected 85 seconds later to push the contest into overtime, where neither team scored. Jake Manfre had a goal and an assist on the night for the host Tigers before 1,725 on-lookers at Hobey Baker Memorial Rink.

Dominic Basse made 21 saves for the Saints (8-18-2 overall, 4-10-2 ECACH), while stopping all three shots he faced in the shootout. Arthur Smith finished with 21 stops for the Tigers (10-11-2, 5-9-2), who will visit St. Lawrence on Feb. 28 to close out the season series between the two schools. The Tigers remain one point ahead of the Saints in the ECAC Hockey standings.

BC, BU to Meet for 2025 Beanpot Crown

For the first time since 2016, the annual Beanpot Tournament will come down to Boston College and Boston University.

No. 8 BU routed Harvard, 7-1, in Monday's men's semifinal opener at TD Garden in Boston, while top-ranked BC pasted two-time defending champion Northeastern, 8-2. Cole Hutson tallied two goals and set up two others for BU in the Terriers' win, while Ryan Leonard notched a goal and two assists for the Eagles in BC's triumph.

Harvard and Northeastern will face off in the consolation contest next Monday at 4:30 p.m. ET, followed by BC-BU for all the beans for the 23rd time in the storied tournament's 72 years. The Eagles swept the Terriers in a home-and-home regular-season series on Jan. 24-25 as Leonard scored four goals and added an assist. 

BC won its last Beanpot in 2016, defeating BU in OT, while BU last took it home in 2022 by beating Northeastern that year in the final, snapping a three-year NU title streak.

ADDENDUM: BU topped BC, 4-1, to win its record 33rd Beanpot title, while Harvard edged Northeastern, 4-3, in the consolation.

Princeton Wins Fourth Straight

After six straight losses, Princeton University men's hockey has now won four straight NCAA contests. 

Following a home sweep of Bentley in non-conference action on Jan. 25-26, the Tigers closed out the first month of the new calendar year with a 4-3 overtime victory at ECAC Hockey/Ivy League rival Harvard on Jan. 31. Kai Daniells notched the game-winner in the extra session, while David Ma recorded a goal and two assists in regulation. Princeton then opened February with a 3-1 win at Dartmouth the next night, also in ECAC Hockey/Ivy League play. Brendan Gorman led the Tigers with a goal and an assist, while Ethan Pearson stopped 19 shots following a 32-save effort at Harvard.

Princeton (10-10-1 overall, 5-8-1 ECAC Hockey) returns to ECAC Hockey action this weekend at home at Hobey Baker Rink, when it faces Clarkson on Friday and St. Lawrence on Saturday.

Leonard Hat Trick Lifts BC in 4-0 Win

Ryan Leonard scored three goals for his second hat trick in two weekends to lift No. 1 Boston College to a 4-0 victory over UMass Lowell in Hockey East play on Friday night.

Leonard, who also scored three goals in a 6-2 conference win at Boston University a week prior on Jan. 24, now leads all NCAA Division I men's players with 22 goals overall after scoring three against the eighth-ranked River Hawks before 7,884 onlookers at BC's Conte Forum. Backup netminder Jan Korec earned the shutout with 22 saves for the host Eagles (19-4-1 overall, 12-3-1 Hockey East), while Beni Halasz made 22 stops for UML (13-8-3, 6-6-2) .

BC, which has now won seven straight games overall, begins the 2025 Beanpot Tournament on Monday night at TD Garden in Boston against Hockey East rival and two-time defending champion Northeastern at 8 p.m. ET. That contest will take place following the opening game at 5 p.m. ET between Boston University and Harvard.

Ohio State Edges Michigan State, 4-2

Gunnarwolfe Fontaine's goal just under eight minutes into the third period broke a two-all tie, and catapulted No. 11 Ohio State to a 4-2 victory last night over visiting No. 2 Michigan State in a Big Ten contest.

Riley Thompson scored two goals for OSU, and also assisted on Fontaine's game-winning wrist shot before 5,339 spectators in Columbus. Logan Terness made 35 saves in earning the win for the Buckeyes (16-7-2 overall, 9-5-1 Big Ten), who suffered a loss and a tie at Penn State last weekend. Thomas Weis scored an insurance goal for OSU late in the third period.

MSU (20-4-3, 11-3-3), which had already lost forward Red Savage to injury for the remainder of the 2024-25 NCAA season, suffered its first loss in regulation since Dec. 6 despite 25 stops on the night from Trey Augustine. David Gucciardi and Karsen Dorwart scored goals for the Spartans.

The Buckeyes and Spartans meet again tonight at Value City Arena to close out their season series. MSU swept OSU in a pair of games in East Lansing, Mich. back in November.

ADDENDUM: MSU gained the series split with a 4-1 win on Friday night, as four different Spartans scored goals and Augustine made 22 saves.

UConn Edges Quinnipiac at Buzzer in CT Ice

Ryan Tattle scored his second of two goals just as regulation ended to lift No. 15 UConn to a 2-1 victory over No. 13 Quinnipiac last night in the first round of the 2025 Connecticut Ice tournament in Fairfield, Conn. 

Tattle roofed a puck in close just before the buzzer sounded to give UConn (13-8-2 overall) its first win since 2014 over Quinnipiac (14-8-2), which got 22 stops in goal from Dylan Silverstein. Tyler Muszelik made 35 saves for the Huskies, who will face host Sacred Heart in the title game tonight. The Pioneers routed Yale, 8-2, in the second semifinal, thanks to a goal and three assists from Mikey Adamson. 

SHU (15-8-4) won the inaugural CT Ice gathering in 2020, while UConn is seeking its first-ever title in the event.

ADDENDUM: Filip Sitar's first-period goal stood up as the game-winner tonight as UConn blanked Sacred Heart, 1-0, to win its first-ever CT Ice championship in the tournament's five years, as Muszelik made 23 saves for the shutout. In the consolation game, Quinnipiac pasted rival Yale (5-13-1) by a 6-2 count.

MSU Gains Split with Michigan

One night after a 3-2 loss in overtime on the road in Ann Arbor, top-ranked Michigan State gained a Big Ten series split with archrival Michigan with a 4-1 victory on Saturday at Munn Ice Arena in East Lansing.

Wisconsin transfer Charlie Stramel scored two goals and set up another for the Spartans (19-3-2 overall, 10-2-2 Big Ten), who got three assists from Isaac Howard and 34 saves from Trey Augustine. Logan Stein made 28 stops for the No. 10 Wolverines (14-9-1, 8-6-0).

The two NCAA schools will close out their regular-season series on Feb. 7 in East Lansing and Feb. 8 in Detroit.

Princeton Falls for Fifth Straight Time

Princeton's NCAA men's hockey losing streak reached five games with Friday's 6-2 setback to visiting Cornell in ECAC Hockey and Ivy League action. The Tigers got goals from Kai Greaves and Brendan Wang, who each tallied the first of goal of his college career, but sandwiched in-between were five goals by the Big Red, before Cornell's Dalton Bancroft closed out the scoring with his second goal of the evening late in the third period. 

Remington Keopple, making his first start of the 2024-25 season, stopped 23 shots for the Big Red, who also got a goal and two assists apiece from Ryan Walsh and Jake Kraft. Arthur Smith had 25 stops for Princeton before a crowd of 2,432 at Hobey Baker Memorial Rink. The Tigers (6-9-1, 3-7-1 ECACH) will host Colgate on Saturday, while Cornell (7-5-4, 4-3-2) will visit No. 13 Quinnipiac.

ADDENDUM: Princeton fell to Colgate, 6-4, while Cornell won in a shootout following a 2-2 tie in regulation at Quinnipiac.

Two Big Ten Freshmen Move on to OHL

A pair of Big Ten freshmen left their respective schools this month to skate in the Ontario Hockey League.

Christian Humphreys (Michigan) left the Wolverines to join the Kitchener Rangers, after recording one assist in 10 NCAA games. A 5-foot-11, 170-pound  forward from Pittsburgh, and a seventh-round selection of the Colorado Avalanche in the 2024 NHL Draft, he had one goal through his first three OHL contests.

Also departing the college ranks was forward Noah Powell (Ohio State), who moved on to the Oshawa Generals after notching two goals and three assists for five points in 17 appearances with the Buckeyes. A native of Northbrook, Ill., the 6-foot-2, 210-pound Powell was chosen in the fifth round last summer by the Philadelphia Flyers, and had notched two assists in his first two outings with Oshawa.

ASU Win Streak Ends, Still Atop NCHC

Arizona State's winning streak may have come to an end, but the Sun Devils remain atop the National Collegiate Hockey Conference standings.

ASU's 10-game win streak, which dated back to Nov. 16, ended on Saturday with a 4-3 overtime loss to visiting North Dakota, one night after the Sun Devils bested UND by a 4-1 count at Mullett Arena. Both teams are now tied for first place in the NCHC with 19 points, with UND at 7-3-2-0 (W-L-OTW-OTL) and ASU at 6-4-1-2.

ASU (11-8-1 overall) is in its first campaign in the NCHC after spending the first nine seasons of its NCAA Division I existence as an independent. The Sun Devils are currently 14th in the Pairwise Rankings, which mimics the selection process for the NCAA tournament.

U.S. Wins Second Straight WJC Gold Medal

Teddy Stiga (Boston College) scored on a partial breakaway just over eight minutes into 3-on-3 overtime to lift the United States to a 4-3 win over Finland in the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship gold medal game tonight in Ottawa.

Team USA overcame deficits of 1-0, 2-1 and 3-1 to claim its second straight WJC gold medal and seventh overall, all of them coming since 2004. James Hagens (Boston College) recorded the first U.S. goal to forge a 1-1 tie in the first period, while Brandon Svoboda (Boston University) and Cole Hutson (Boston University) tallied second-period scores to tie the contest at 3-3 after 40 minutes of play.

Ryan Leonard (Boston College), who earned tournament MVP honors, had two assists on the night, while Trey Augustine (Michigan State) made 21 saves in goal for the Americans. Hutson led all WJC scorers with three goals and eight assists for 11 points in seven games, while Leonard was third overall with 5-5—10 points and Augustine finished with a 2.52 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage.

Czechia defeated Sweden, 3-2, in a shootout to claim the bronze medal. Next year's WJC will be contested in Minnesota, the first time it will be held in the U.S. since Buffalo in 2018.

Frozen Confines Success in Chicago

The first-ever Frozen Confines at Chicago's historic Wrigley Field this month featured two ties and two wins among some of the top Division I hockey teams in the nation from the Big Ten and the WCHA.

On Jan. 3, Penn State and Notre Dame skated to a 3-3 tie, with UND winning the subsequent shootout, while Ohio State edged Michigan, 4-3. On Jan. 4, Michigan State outlasted Wisconsin, 4-3, in overtime, while in WCHA women's hockey, Wisconsin and Ohio State tied, 3-3, with OSU claiming the shootout victory.

Each game at the longtime home of MLB's Chicago Cubs drew in excess of 24,00 spectators, in a venue that seats 41,649 for baseball.

UNH Blanks Princeton, 3-0

Jared Whale made 15 saves for the shutout, and visiting New Hampshire scored three third-period goals to top Princeton, 3-0, on Friday night at Hobey Baker Rink in non-conference play.

After UNH killed off a five-minute major penalty to Marty Lavins that spanned the second and third periods, the Wildcats (9-4-3 overall) got goals from Ryan Conmy, Robert Cronin and Lavins (empty net) in a span of just under 12 minutes to extend their unbeaten streak to seven games. For Whale, who played the last two seasons with Alaska Anchorage, it was his second shutout of the season, and fourth of his NCAA career.

Arthur Smith made 16 stops for the Tigers (6-5-1), who saw their five-game winning streak snapped as they were shut out at home for the first time in almost two years. The two schools will close out their two-game series on Saturday at Princeton at 4 p.m. ET.

ADDENDUM: UNH raced out to a 3-0 first-period lead in the rematch, then held on for a 4-3 win. 

U.S. Drops Swiss in WJC Quarterfinals

Fresh off a convincing 4-1 victory over host Canada in its last game of round-robin play on New Year's Eve, the United States moved closer to defending its gold medal status at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship in Ottawa with a 7-2 win today over Switzerland in the quarterfinal round.

James Hagens (Boston College) and Ryan Leonard (Boston College) each scored two goals for the Group A champion Americans, who also got 17 saves in goal from Hampton Slukynsky (Western Michigan) and three assists offensively from Gabe Perreault (Boston College).

The U.S. will now face Czechia in the WJC semifinals on Saturday. The other semifinal will match Sweden and Finland, with the winners to meet on Sunday for the championship.

ADDENDUM: Team USA defeated Czechia, 4-1, and will face Finland on Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET (NHL Network) for the gold. Czechia will meet Sweden for the bronze.

Hockey New Year 2025