30 Years Since Devils First Stanley Cup Title

The New Jersey Devils won their first-ever Stanley Cup 30 years ago today at the Meadowlands, completing a four-game sweep of the visiting Detroit Red Wings with a 5-2 victory. Former NCAA players on that NHL championship squad included (by last name): 

• Neal Broten (Minnesota)

• Danton Cole (Michigan State)

• Shawn Chambers (Alaska Fairbanks)

• Tom Chorske (Minnesota)

• Kevin Dean (New Hampshire)

• Jim Dowd (Lake Superior State)

• Bruce Driver (Wisconsin)

• Bill Guerin (Boston College)

• Randy McKay (Michigan Tech)

• Mike Peluso (Alaska Anchorage)

• Brian Rolston (Lake Superior State)

• Chris Terreri (Providence)

New Jersey also won the Stanley Cup again in 2000 and 2003, while also making the final in 2001 and 2012.

More NCAA Head Coaching Changes Occur

Two more NCAA Division I schools have or will be making head coaching changes.

Jeff Jackson (Michigan State) will step down from college coaching following the 2024-25 season at the University of Notre Dame, after helming the Fighting Irish for a full 20 years. Since taking over in South Bend in 2005-06, Jackson, 69, has led UND to an overall record of 407-266-73, including 12 NCAA tournament berths, eight combined conference regular-season and tournament titles over three leagues (CCHA, Hockey East, Big Ten), four NCAA Frozen Four berths, and two NCAA championship game appearances. 

Prior to joining the Irish, Jackson spent six seasons as head coach at Lake Superior State University, winning two NCAA championships while also leading the Lakers to six NCAA tournament appearances, four CCHA tournament crowns and two CCHA regular-season titles. A native of Roseville, Michigan, Jackson has also served as head coach with St. Clair (NAHL), the U.S. National Team Development Program, and Guelph (OHL), while also working as an assistant with LSSU and the New York Islanders. He is also a two-time winner of the Spencer Penrose Award as the top head coach in college hockey, and has fashioned an overall NCAA record of 589-318-98.

Dave Shyiak (Northern Michigan) has returned to his alma mater as head coach after serving the past four years as associate head coach at St. Cloud State, where he helped the Huskies to the 2021 NCAA championship game. A native of Brandon, Manitoba, Shyiak previously served as head coach at the University of Alaska Anchorage from 2005 to 2013, where he compiled a record of 80-177-33 with the Seawolves. 

Shyiak, 57, first worked as a head coach in the BCJHL with both Kimberley and Merritt, then spent 10 seasons as assistant/associate head coach at NMU, before later serving as associate head coach at Western Michigan for six seasons after coaching at UAA. He was also a member of NMU's 1991 NCAA championship team, and tallied 20 goals and 22 assists for 42 points to go with 217 penalty minutes in 125 career games as a forward with the Wildcats. 

Former NMU head coach Grant Potulny (Minnesota), who left the Wildcats earlier this month after seven years in Marquette, has been announced as head coach of the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack, the top affiliate of the New York Rangers. He guided NMU to a 128-113-17 mark overall, including their transition from the WCHA to the new CCHA, as just the third head coach in program history.

R.I.P. Blaine Lacher

Former NCAA and NHL netminder Blaine Lacher (Lake Superior State) passed away late last month at the age of 53.

A native of Medicine Hat, Alta., Lacher backstopped Lake Superior to its most recent national title in 1994, the same season in which he set a still-standing NCAA shutout streak record at 375 minutes and one second. In three seasons with the Lakers, he recorded 49 wins along with a 2.45 goals-against average, eight shutouts and five assists. 

Lacher played two seasons in the NHL with the Boston Bruins, compiling a 22-16-4 overall record in 47 regular-season outings with a 2.80 GAA and four shutouts. He also played for Providence (AHL) and Cleveland (IHL) before finishing his professional career with expansion Grand Rapids (IHL) in 1996-97.

He leaves behind his father, two sisters, and a son.

Paul Jerrard 1965-2023

University of Nebraska-Omaha assistant coach Paul Jerrard passed away earlier this week after a lengthy battle with cancer. He was 57.

The Winnipeg native played on defense for Lake Superior State University from 1983 to 1987, notching 40 goals and 73 assists for 113 points to go with 199 penalty minutes for the Lakers over four seasons, before embarking on a 10-year professional career that included five NHL appearances, all with the Minnesota North Stars during the 1988-89 campaign.

Drafted 173rd overall by the New York Rangers in 1983 after starring for the Notre Dame (Sask.) Hounds, the 6-foot-1 Jerrard played in the now-defunct International Hockey League with Colorado/Denver, Kalamazoo, Albany, Milwaukee and Fort Wayne, totaling 73-139—212 points and 1,144 PIM in 503 IHL regular-season contests over eight years. He finished his playing career by skating two seasons with Hershey (AHL), helping the Bears to the 1997 Calder Cup championship.

Jerrard immediately entered the coaching ranks, and spent four of his first five years at his alma mater of LSSU. He also coached with Lowell, Hershey, Iowa, Texas and Utica in the AHL, and with Colorado, Dallas and Calgary in the NHL, all as an assistant, before joining Omaha for the 2018-19 NCAA campaign.

He is survived by his wife, Cheryl, and daughters Catherine and Meaghan.

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.

2021 NCAA Division I Men's Hockey Regionals - Day One

 

The first day of the 2021 NCAA Division I Men's Hockey Championship is in the books, with the first day of regional competition completed.

Bridgeport, CT Regional

Bemidji State 6, Wisconsin 3

The fourth-seeded Beavers jumped to a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes and then made it 4-1 after 40 minutes en route to eliminating the Badgers, who got two goals from Cole Caufield. Brendan Harris led Bemidji with a goal and two assists, while Zach Driscoll made 30 saves. 

Massachusetts 5, Lake Superior State 1

The Minutemen spoiled Lake Superior's first NCAA tournament appearance in 25 years by breaking a 1 1-1 first period tie with four unanswered goals. Jake Gaudet scored twice and Oliver Chau set up two goals for UMass, which got 20 stops from Filip Lindberg. 

Fargo, ND Regional

North Dakota 5, American International 1

The Fighting Hawks raced out to a 4-0 advantage in advancing to the regional final. Collin Adams and Jasper Weatherby scored two goals apiece for UND, while Adam Scheel stopped 18 AIC shots.  

Minnesota-Duluth over Michigan

No contest, Michigan ruled out of tournament due to positive COVID-19 tests.

The regional winners will now meet in their respective regional finals on Saturday:

 

Bemidji State versus Massachusetts, 5 p.m. ET, ESPNU (Bridgeport)

North Dakota versus Minnesota-Duluth, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPNU (Fargo)

The other two NCAA regionals will both begin tomorrow:

Albany, NY Regional

Boston University versus St. Cloud State, 1 p.m. ET, ESPNews 

Boston College over Notre Dame (no contest, Notre Dame out due to COVID-19)

 

Loveland, CO Regional

Minnesota State versus Quinnipiac, 5 p.m. ET,  ESPN3

Minnesota versus Nebraska-Omaha, 10 p.m. ET, ESPNU

 

The Albany and Loveland regional finals will each be contested on Sunday. All schedules and telecasts are subject to change.

CCHA to Return in 2021-22

The Central Collegiate Hockey Association appears to be coming back—at the expense of the current Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

Bemidji State, Bowling Green, Ferris State, Lake Superior State, Michigan Tech, Minnesota State and Northern Michigan will be leaving the WCHA to start up the new CCHA in 2021-22, according to several published reports. The original CCHA disbanded in 2013, after more than 40 years of prestigious NCAA Division I men's hockey, following the formation of both the new Big Ten Hockey Conference and the National Collegiate Hockey Conference, and the loss of CCHA member schools to those two leagues plus the WCHA.

The logo, commissioner, playoff format and other details of the new CCHA have yet to be determined. The seismic shift to the WCHA at the end of next season will leave Alaska Anchorage, Alaska (Fairbanks) and Alabama-Huntsville without a conference home. All three were previously Division I independents in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The only current NCAA Division I men's ice hockey independent is Arizona State.

Seven Schools Plan to Leave WCHA

Seven of the 10 schools in the current Western Collegiate Hockey Association are seeking to leave and form a new NCAA Division I men's ice hockey conference, according to published reports.

The seven schools making the proposed move include Bemidji State University, Bowling Green State University, Ferris State University, Lake Superior State University, Michigan Technological University, Minnesota State University (Mankato), and Northern Michigan University. The new league would begin play in the fall of 2021, and according to bgsufalcons.com, the seven schools have already independently submitted formal letters of notice to the WCHA office regarding their intent to leave the conference.

The "original" WCHA split up in 2013 when Minnesota and Wisconsin went over to the new Big Ten conference, and Colorado College, Denver, Minnesota-Duluth, Nebraska-Omaha, North Dakota and St. Cloud State joined the new National Collegiate Hockey Conference. Bowling Green, Ferris State Lake Superior and Northern Michigan all left the dissolving Central Collegiate Hockey Association that year and transferred to the new WCHA.

The loss of the seven aforementioned schools would leave the WCHA with just three members in Alabama-Huntsville, Alaska Anchorage, and Alaska (Fairbanks).

Weight Wins First Game as NHL Head Coach

Doug Weight (Lake Superior State) has his first win as an interim NHL head coach.

Weight, who was elevated to the top coaching position with the New York Islanders on Tuesday after predecessor Jack Capuano (Maine) was let go by the club, picked up his first victory in charge of an NHL bench on Thursday night in Brooklyn as the Islanders defeated the Dallas Stars, 3-0.

Born in Detroit, Weight, 46, played two seasons at LSSU, tallying 50 goals and 94 assists for 134 points in 88 career games with the Lakers. He also earned All-CCHA and All-America accolades, and later endowed a hockey scholarship at the university. 

Drafted in the second round (34th overall) of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, following his freshman campaign at LSSU, he turned pro the following year with the Rangers, appearing in one 1991 Stanley Cup Playoff game after competing his sophomore season with the Lakers. 

By the time he was done 20 years later, in 2010-11, Weight had collected 278-755—1,033 points in 1,238 NHL regular-season outings with the Rangers, Edmonton Oilers, St. Louis Blues, Carolina Hurricanes, Anaheim Ducks and the Islanders, according to hockeydb.com. A four-time NHL All-Star, he also recorded 23-49—72 points in 97 Stanley Cup Playoff contests, and won the Cup with Carolina in 2006.

Weight also won the inaugural World Cup with the U.S. in 1996, and six years later helped the Americans to the silver medal at the Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City. He also appeared in the 1998 and 2006 Olympic Games, and was inducted into the USA Hockey Hall of Fame in 2013.

A former Islander team captain, Weight was in his third season as the franchise's Senior Advisor to the General Manager, and sixth as an assistant coach when he succeeded Capuano, who had served as Islander head coach since November 2010 and won 227 of 483 NHL games in his tenure.

Former Laker Rolston Retires from NHL

Former Lake Superior State University forward Brian Rolston, who led the Lakers to the 1992 NCAA Championship, has retired from the National Hockey League.

Rolston, who played 17 years in the NHL, won a Stanley Cup with the New Jersey Devils in 1995. The Devils drafted Rolston in the first round, 11th overall, in 1991 from the Compuware junior "A" club in the North American Hockey League.

A native of Flint, Mich., Rolston also played for the Colorado Avalanche, Boston Bruins, Minnesota Wild and New York Islanders in his career, in which he amassed 342 goals and 419 assists for 761 points in 1,256 regular-season games, according to hockeydb.com. A fast skater with a hard shot, he added 20-14—34 points in 77 Stanley Cup playoff outings.

A three-time U.S. Olympian, Rolston won a silver medal in the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City. He was also a member of the American squad that won the first-ever hockey World Cup in 1996, and is now the last player from that team to retire.

“Getting the chance to play the game I love for 17 years has truly been a dream come true,” Rolston said through the NHL Players’ Association in announcing his retirement. “My career has taken me to many great places where I had the privilege to play with some exceptional teammates and in the best league in the world. The memories of all my experiences will certainly stick with me for the rest of my life. I am grateful for the overwhelming support of my friends, family and fans throughout my career.”

Rolston played in a combined 70 games with the Islanders and Boston in 2011-12, his last NHL season, and picked up 7-17—24 points before adding a goal and two assists in seven playoff contests with the Bruins, who were eliminated in the first round last year by the Washington Capitals. He played his final NHL game on April 25, 2012, in Boston's 2-1 overtime loss to Washington at TD Garden in Boston.

He turned pro in 1993-94 with Albany (AHL), and had 5-5—10 points in 17 games after playing for the 1994 U.S National/Olympic Team that season. He then recorded 9-11—20 points in 18 games with Albany the following year during the first NHL lockout to conclude the minor-league league portion of his professional career.

In two seasons at LSSU, Rolston tallied 51-59—110 points in just 80 games. He scored the national championship-winning goal against Wisconsin as a freshman in 1992 at Knickerbocker Arena in Albany, and then scored 33 goals a year later as a sophomore in his final NCAA action.