ECH Weekend Review: February 23-25
written By Alex Berger and ariana ottrando - March 1, 2024:We're officially into trophy season, as both Atlantic Hockey and the ECAC have their regular season champions. RIT and Quinnipiac have those honors, respectively, the latter continuing their dominance in the conference with a fourth-straight regular season title.
This week's recap will take a big focus on all of the conference races still to be decided around the country. The Big Ten, CCHA, Hockey East, and NCHC still have regular-season championships up for grabs — many of them down to just two teams in the race. For some conferences, this upcoming weekend is the last of the regular season — two of which have head-to-head matchups to determine who gets to raise a trophy.
- #4 Quinnipiac, RIT Win Regular Season Championships
The defending national champions picked up another trophy in their title defense last weekend. With a win over Brown and a Cornell shootout loss to St. Lawrence on Saturday night, Quinnipiac became the outright winners of their fourth-straight ECAC regular season championship.
Via: @QU_MIH on Twitter
Collin Graf and Jacob Quillan once again led the way for the Bobcats, posting a combined three assists in the first period alone. Quinnipiac raced out to a 4-0 lead after the first twenty, chasing goaltender Lawton Zacher from the game. Despite Brown getting on the board twice in the third period, the Bobcats were already well in front, pacing the Bears to a 5-2 win.
With one weekend to go in the ECAC the top three teams are pretty much set. Cornell trails Quinnipiac by nine points for first place, but leads current third-place team Colgate by four. All 12 teams in the conference make the tournament, with the top four teams receiving a first-round bye. Clarkson and Dartmouth are currently tied with 31 points for fourth place and that coveted last bye.
Meanwhile in the Atlantic, RIT got to celebrate before their first game of the weekend. With a Holy Cross loss to Bentley last Thursday, the Tigers won their first regular season championship in over a decade. They celebrated with a blowout 9-2 win against Canisius at home Friday night. Seven different players had a multiple point night, led by freshman forward Christian Catalano with two goals and an assist. RIT took the series sweep on Saturday on the road, beating the Golden Griffins 3-2.
Atlantic Hockey's postseason tournament begins March 1st weekend, as the teams who finished 6th-11th play in an elimination game to trim the field down to the final eight teams. The top five teams — RIT, Holy Cross, Sacred Heart, Air Force, and American International — all get a bye, and the top four will host best-of-three series beginning in two weeks. You can find the full matchups later on in this recap.
- #3 Michigan State Upset, Showdown For First Place in Big Ten Next Week
After being swept last weekend by Ohio State, #7 Wisconsin took a drop in both the ECH and Big Ten rankings. The pair of losses also gave #3 Michigan State an opening to clinch the conference regular season title at home against those same Buckeyes this past week in East Lansing.
The biggest upset of the weekend came on Friday night, as the Spartans returned to the Munn for the first time in nearly a month. But despite two Gavin O'Connell goals -- including a power play tally just under two minutes into the game -- Ohio State dominated the game. They put up 19 shots in the first period, tied the game, and ran away late in the second. OSU scored three in a six-minute stretch to silence the 6,500 in attendance. The 6-2 win was the Buckeyes' third-straight over a top-five team (they swept then #5 Wisconsin at home last weekend).
Michigan State responded like a top team in game two, as five different skaters scored a goal in a 5-2 win. The Spartans went 3-for-4 on the power play and got 28 saves from Trey Augustine. The win kept them first in the Big Ten and #5 in the Pairwise, trailing Wisconsin by just .0005 in the Ratings Percentage Index (or RPI).
Speaking of the Badgers, they took five of six points in Happy Valley against Penn State. After a dominant 6-0 win on Friday the two teams needed overtime to decide a winner in game two. Sophomore defenseman Ben Drexheimer was the hero, skating from the point to the slot past a Nittany Lion defenseman, and forcing a backhand through the five hole.
With the sweep and Michigan State dropping three points in their series, Wisconsin is still in the race for the conference regular-season title. The Badgers need to make up some ground -- still trailing MSU by two points -- but host the Spartans at the Kohl Center for the final series of the year. Two of Wisconsin's four conference regulation losses of the year came on the road against Michigan State in November, and the Badgers are likely looking for some revenge. It will be must-watch this weekend between two of the top ten teams in the country.
- #1 Boston College Stays Atop Hockey East, Gauthier Up To 29 Goals
To no surprise, No. 1 BC extended its four-game win streak to six this weekend with a sweep of the University of Vermont Catamounts. The Eagles have dominated Hockey East and the league all season, not losing a conference matchup since Jan.13 (excluding the Beanpot Semifinals) and falling in only one non-conference contest versus Denver back in October.
Boston College faced some adversity through the opening minutes of Friday's game, taking two penalties and matching roughing minors with UVM for minimal even-strength play early. But after a power play of their own and settling into 5-on-5, the Eagles tallied first on the scoreboard at 13:32 with sophomore Lukas Gustafsson's third goal of the year.
The 1-0 score carried into period two, but so did the Eagles momentum. The favor was returned when UVM was called for back-to-back minors and BC capitalized on both. The consecutive PP goals were generated by sophomore Cutter Gauthier and assisted by the notorious "kid line" in freshmen Gabe Perreault, Will Smith and Ryan Leonard. Boston College netted two more unanswered goals in the middle frame, for a total of five, before Vermont notched its first at 12:45 [by freshman Mario Gasparini] for a 5-1 game.
"They can be dangerous," said BC head coach Greg Brown post-game of the power play unit. "They have ideas, they discuss them in the locker room. They really take ownership over the power play."
BC went onto score two more goals in the third for a final of 7-1. Eagles' point leader Smith picked up three points with assists on three of the seven tallies. "We get a lot of rush chances, but just trying to get more sustained pressure," said Smith. "I think that's something that we're trying to do a lot more of."
Saturday's rematch was a closer one and Vermont secured the 1-0 lead only 35 seconds in — but Boston College reclaimed it by first intermission. With help from Gauthier and Smith, Leonard put up consecutive goals for a 2-1 score.
The teams went scoreless through the second period and the Catamounts tied up to start the third. A minute later, Gauthier put the Eagles back on top in a shorthanded effort for his team-high 29th goal of the season. With eight points for the series, Gauthier stretched his 14-game point streak to 16 — the longest in the nation. Smith netted the fourth and final goal, in the final minutes of regulation, for a 4-2 game and finisher of the Eagles' six-point weekend.
Boston College's 25-5-1 (17-3-1 HE) record has already cemented their bye and home-ice advantage for the conference tournament starting in roughly two weeks. The Eagles will close out the regular season with their last HE series this upcoming weekend versus UNH and a standalone match against Merrimack the following on Mar. 9th.
- Bemidji State Leads Race for CCHA After Sweep Over St. Thomas
In the most contested conference race still up for grabs, five teams entered the weekend with a chance to win the CCHA regular season title. Two of those teams were playing each other, as the top team in the conference Bemidji State traveled south for a matchup against St. Thomas.
The two teams met on Friday night in a crazy back-and-forth game, which saw a total of 11 combined goals on 63 shots. Despite not getting a single power play opportunity, Bemidji State was tied or leading the entire game, jumping out to both 3-1 and 4-2 leads. But both times the Tommies responded, eventually tying the game 4-4 early in the third period thanks to a goal from freshman defenseman Cole Miller, his first of the season.
Bemidji State regained the lead minutes later, as Jere Vaisanen battled for a loose puck in front of the net and pushed it past St. Thomas goalie Aaron Trotter. It looked like they were going to hold on, staving off nearly three minutes of 6-on-5 play from UST. But with just seconds left on the clock a crazy play by Liam Malquist at the blue line kept the puck in off of a clearing attempt, and the freshman got the puck to Luke Manning at the side of the net. After his initial shot was blocked, the senior buried the rebound to tie the game and send it to overtime.
Despite the late goal, St. Thomas would not be able to capitalize on the momentum, not even getting a shot on net during the extra session. Bemidji State got a play set up 3-on-3 and onto the stick of Jackson Jutting. The senior forward took the puck 150 feet down the ice and wristed it past Trotter from the right circle for the game-winner.
Needing a win to stay alive in the CCHA race, it looked as though Jake Sibell would lead St. Thomas to a huge three points in game two of the series. But despite 37 saves (including 20 in the second period alone) and a highlight-reel scorpion save which made SportsCenter, the Sibell and the Tommies couldn't find enough to get past the Beavers and their goaltender Mattias Sholl. St. Thomas wouldn't get on the board until late in the third period when BSU was already up 3-0. The sweep knocked them out of contention, and propelled Bemidji State to the top of the standings.
One of the other teams in contention, Bowling Green, were knocked off twice at home by Michigan Tech. Despite not having transfer Austen Swankler, the Huskies dominated with 7-0 and 3-1 wins. MTU is now tied for third in the conference with St. Thomas, a point ahead of the Falcons.
It looked like Minnesota State was going to suffer the same fate, losing on Friday night to Lake Superior State at home. After going down 3-2 in game two, Minnesota State rebounded with two goals in the third period for a huge win that kept them in the line for the CCHA regular-season championship.
That title will come down to next weekend between the Mavericks and Bemidji State. The Beavers not only have a four-point lead in the standings but will host both games, needing just one win to clinch their first regular-season championship since 2017. For MSUM, they're looking to a continue a recent dynasty over the past decade in the WCHA/CCHA, something not many expected when head coach Mike Hastings left for Wisconsin.
- Jackson Blake Posts Seven Points in Sweep, #5 North Dakota Widens Lead in NCHC
After a tough series last weekend against Colorado College which saw the Fighting Hawks get dominated back-to-back nights, North Dakota returned back to the Ralph for pair of "get right" games against Minnesota-Duluth. The Bulldogs have struggled since January — they lost their second top-line center to academic ineligibility — and were also looking to get back on track after being swept at home by Denver.
NoDak would jump out right away in the series, scoring a power play goal just 65 seconds in on Friday night. Minutes later, freshman Jayden Perron scored on the breakaway and the rout was on. The Fighting Hawks would completely stifle Ben Steeves and the Bulldogs' offense, allowing just 17 shots in a 6-0 win. North Dakota goaltender Ludvig Persson stopped all 17 for his fourth shutout of the season (and second against Minnesota-Duluth).
The driving offensive force in the win was star sophomore Jackson Blake, who scored the game's opening goal and added four assists for his first career five-point night. His best play came late in the second period, deflecting a saucer pass on the forecheck, battling through two defenders to the goal, and dropping a no-look pass to Cameron Berg in the slot for his second goal of the game. Blake would add two more points in Saturday night's game for a seven-point weekend and now has 47 on the season (T-5th in the NCAA).
It looked to be more of the same in game two, as North Dakota jumped out to a 2-0 lead by the second period thanks to a power play goal and pair of Blake assists. But Minnesota-Duluth played with much more energy in the series finale, getting pucks in deep and shots in the from the point. Sophomore defenseman Aidan Dubinsky got the Bulldogs on the board first, sneaking a puck just past Persson and over the net to cut the lead to 2-1. Then minutes later he got the puck to Jack Smith in the high slot, who fired it past Persson to tie the game at 2-2.
Despite Minnesota-Duluth dominating play in the third period (shots were 9-3 Bulldogs), they couldn't get another one past Persson. Instead it was Dylan James and North Dakota who found the back of the net twice. Four minutes into the period defenseman Keaton Pehrson got the puck to James in the neutral zone, and he turned on the burners. The sophomore skated around a defenseman and to the net, beating UMD goaltender Matthew Thiessen with a great power move on the forehand. Then with time winding down James struck again, collecting a high clearing pass from Owen McLaughlin for a breakaway, beating Thiessen above the right shoulder for his second goal of the period. Despite a couple of good shifts by Duluth, North Dakota would hold on to the 4-2 win and series sweep.
With the pair of wins the Fighting Hawks kept pace at first in the NCHC. They also got some help from Western Michigan, who posted a comeback 4-3 OT win against St. Cloud on Friday night (albeit with the help of a controversial 'no goal' call for the Huskies late in that game). North Dakota now has a three point lead in the standings over SCSU with four games to go, and welcomes in those same Broncos to the Ralph next weekend. #15 St. Cloud hosts #6 Denver, a pair of great matchups among four of the top five teams in the conference.
- NCHC Standings
1. North Dakota (43 Points): Swept Minnesota-Duluth at home with 6-0, 4-2 wins
2. St. Cloud State (40 Points): Split with Western Michigan at home with 4-3 OT loss, 3-0 win
3. Denver (36 Points): "Swept" Miami at home with 4-3 SO, 8-1 wins
4. Colorado College (34 Points): "Swept by" Omaha on the road with 3-0, 2-1 SO losses
5. Western Michigan (31 Points): Split with St. Cloud State on the road with 4-3 OT win, 3-0 loss
6. Omaha (28 Points): "Swept" Colorado College at home with 3-0, 2-1 SO wins
7. Minnesota-Duluth (21 Points): Swept by North Dakota on the road with 6-0, 4-2 losses
8. Miami (8 Points): "Swept by" Denver on the road with 4-3 SO, 8-1 losses
- Big Ten Standings
1. Michigan State (49 Points): Split with Ohio State at home with 6-2 loss, 5-2 win
2. Wisconsin (47 Points): Swept Penn State on the road with 6-0, 3-2 OT wins
3. Minnesota (37 Points): No games scheduled
4. Michigan (34 Points): Swept Notre Dame at home with 4-0, 2-1 wins
5. Notre Dame (31 Points): Swept by Michigan on the road with 4-0, 2-1 losses
6. Penn State (21 Points): Swept by Wisconsin at home with 6-0, 3-2 OT losses
7. Ohio State (15 Points): Split with Michigan State on the road with 6-2 win, 5-2 loss
- CCHA Standings
1. Bemidji State (42 Points): Swept St. Thomas on the road with 6-5 OT, 3-1 wins
2. Minnesota State (38 Points): Split with Lake Superior at home with 4-3 loss, 4-3 win
T-3. Michigan Tech (36 Points): Swept Bowling Green on the road with 7-0, 3-1 wins
T-3. St. Thomas (36 Points): Swept by Bemidji State at home with 6-5 OT, 3-1 losses
5. Bowling Green (35 Points): Swept by Michigan Tech at home with 7-0, 3-1 losses
6. Lake Superior (31 Points): Split with Minnesota State on the road with 4-3 win, 4-3 loss
7. Northern Michigan (30 Points): "Split with" Ferris State on the road with 3-2 win, 2-1 SO loss
8. Ferris State (19 Points): "Split with" Northern Michigan at home with 3-2 loss, 2-1 SO win
- Hockey East Standings
1. Boston College (52 Points): Swept Vermont at home with 7-1, 4-2 wins
2. Boston University (51 Points): Swept Connecticut with 6-0 win on the road, 6-1 win at home
3. Providence (36 Points): Beat UMass-Lowell on the road 2-1, 4-2 win over Merrimack Thursday night.
4. Maine (35 Points): Split with Northeastern at home with 5-1 win, 4-0 loss
5. Massachusetts (32 Points): Split with New Hampshire with 3-2 win at home, 3-2 OT loss on the road
6. New Hampshire (30 Points): Split with Massachusetts with 3-2 loss on the road, 3-2 OT win at home
7. Northeastern (26 Points): Split with Maine on the road with 5-1 loss, 4-0 win
T-8. Connecticut (23 Points): Swept by Boston University with 6-0 loss at home, 6-1 loss on the road
T-8. Vermont (23 Points): Swept by Boston College on the road with 7-1, 4-2 losses
10. Merrimack (18 Points): 4-2 loss to Providence Thursday night
11. UMass-Lowell (16 Points): Lost to Providence at home 2-1
- ECAC Standings
1. Quinnipiac (50 Points): Beat Brown on the road 5-2
2. Cornell (41 Points): Lost to Clarkson on the road 4-3 OT, "beat" St. Lawrence on the road 3-2 SO
3. Colgate (37 Points): Lost to St. Lawrence on the road 4-3 OT, beat Clarkson on the road 4-3 OT
T-4. Clarkson (31 Points): Beat Cornell at home 4-3 OT, lost to Colgate at home 4-3 OT
T-4. Dartmouth (31 Points): Beat Rensselaer on the road 5-1, beat Union on the road 5-4
6. Union (29 Points): Beat Harvard at home 6-2, lost to Dartmouth at home 5-4
7. St. Lawrence (27 Points): Beat Colgate at home 4-3 OT, "lost to" Cornell at home 3-2 SO
8. Harvard (25 Points): Lost to Union on the road 6-2, "beat" Rensselaer on the road 3-2 SO
T-9. Princeton (24 Points): Beat Yale on the road 4-1, beat Brown on the road 5-1
T-9. Yale (24 Points): Lost to Princeton at home 4-1
11. Rensselaer (21 Points): Lost to Dartmouth at home 5-1, "lost to" Harvard at home 3-2 SO
12. Brown (20 Points): Lost to Quinnipiac at home 5-2, lost to Princeton at home 5-1
- Atlantic Hockey Final Standings / Postseason Bracket
1. RIT (54 Points): Swept Canisius with 9-2 win at home, 3-2 win on the road
2. Holy Cross (46 Points): Lost to Bentley at home 5-1
3. Sacred Heart (45 Points): "Lost to" Bentley on the road 3-2 SO
4. Air Force (44 Points): Swept Robert Morris at home with 5-2, 2-1 wins
5. AIC (42 Points): "Split with" Army on the road with 3-2 SO loss, 5-1 win
T-6. Niagara (41 Points): Split with Mercyhurst with 6-1 loss at home, 4-3 win on the road
T-6. Bentley (41 Points): Beat Holy Cross on the road 5-1, "beat" Sacred Heart at home 3-2 SO
8. Canisius (33 Points): Swept by RIT with 9-2 loss on the road, 3-2 loss at home
9. Mercyhurst (30 Points): Split with Niagara with 6-1 win on the road, 4-3 loss at home
10. Army (28 Points): "Split with" AIC at home with 3-2 SO win, 5-1 loss
11. Robert Morris (25 Points): Swept by Air Force on the road with 5-2, 2-1 losses
- - - - -
- First Round (Single Elimination)
#6 Bentley hosts #11 Robert Morris
#7 Niagara hosts #10 Army
#8 Canisius hosts #9 Mercyhurst
- Quarterfinals (Best-of-Three Series)
#1 RIT hosts ???
#2 Holy Cross hosts ???
#3 Sacred Heart hosts???
#4 Air Force hosts #5 American International
- Independent Roundup
Alaska: Split with Arizona State at home with 3-1 win, 4-3 OT loss
Alaska-Anchorage: Split with Augustana on the road with 6-5 OT win, 3-0 loss
Arizona State: Split with Alaska on the road with 3-1 loss, 4-3 OT win
Augustana: Split with Alaska-Anchorage at home with 6-5 OT loss, 3-0 win
Lindenwood: No games scheduled
Long Island: Swept Stonehill at home with 7-2, 4-2 wins
Stonehill: Swept by Long Island on the road with 7-2, 4-2 losses
- Hobey Baker Award Watchlist
1. Cutter Gauthier, So., Boston College; 29 goals (1st in NCAA), 19 assists, 48 points (T-3rd), 1.55 points/game (6th), 8 GWG (T-1st)
2. Macklin Celebrini, Fr. Forward, Boston University; 26 goals (2nd), 22 assists (T-32nd), 48 points (T-3rd), 1.60 points/game (3rd)
3. Jackson Blake, So. Forward, North Dakota; 18 goals (T-15th), 29 assists (T-7th), 47 points (T-5th), 1.47 points/game (T-8th), 5 GWG (T-5th)
4. Gabe Perreault, Fr. Forward, Boston College; 15 goals (T-31st), 35 assists (1st), 50 points (2nd), 1.67 points/game (1st), four GWG (T-10th), 16-game point streak
5. Will Smith, Fr. Forward, Boston College; 17 goals (T-22nd), 24 assists (T-2nd), 51 points (1st), 1.65 points/game (2nd), 17-game point streak
Honorable Mentions: Collin Graf, (Quinnipiac), Ryan Leonard (Boston College), Massimo Rizzo (Denver), Jack Devine (Denver), and Jimmy Snuggerud (Minnesota)
- Mike Richter Award Watchlist (Stats Per Qualified Goaltenders in NCAA)
1. Kyle McClellan, Sr., Wisconsin; 22-8-1 record (T-2nd in NCAA in wins), 1.90 GAA (2nd), 7 shutouts (1st), and .932 SV% (1st)
2. Ian Shane, Jr. Cornell; 16-3-6 (13th wins, 1st fewest losses), 1.63 GAA (1st), 3 shutouts (T-5th), .922 SV% (10th)
3. Justen Close, Gr. Minnesota; 18-8-5 (T-7th), 2.33 GAA (13th), 4 shutouts (T-2nd), .923 SV% (T-8th), and 860 saves (7th)
4. Ryan Bischel, Gr., Notre Dame; 15-17-2 record (T-14th), 2.46 GAA (23rd), 3 shutouts (T-5th), .927 SV% (T-4th), and 1,046 saves (1st)
5. Kaidan Mbereko, So., Colorado College; 18-10-2 (T-7th), 2.37 GAA (16th), 0 shutouts (T-57th), .920 SV% (T-11th)
Honorable Mentions: Jacob Fowler (Boston College), Trey Augustine (Michigan State), Tommy Scarfone (RIT), Vinny Duplessis (Quinnipiac), and Jake Sibell (St. Thomas)
