ECH Weekend Review: January 20-22
By Alex Berger - Jan 23, 2023
Photo by Spencer Cross (Cornell Athletics)
This week in college hockey saw the #1 team in the country suffer a pair of surprising losses, one of the best series' of the season at Mariucci, and a dominating sweep in a top-four showdown.
Depending on the conference, teams have between three and five weeks of regular season hockey left to play. Even if your team doesn't have a chance to win a regular season title, these games are critical for postseason tournament positioning.
Quinnipiac Loses Two Straight After Just One Loss All Season
The consensus #1 team in the country (#1 in ECH, USCHO, and USA Today Polls) lost just their second and third games of the season this weekend: 4-0 at Cornell on Friday, 3-2 at Colgate on Saturday. The Bobcats still sit at 18-3-3, first in the ECAC standings, and #4 in the Pairwise.
The Bobcats had their chances on Friday night with three first-period power plays. However, Quinnipiac managed only four shots on goal the entire period, struggling to get into the game early.
It went better for the Bobcats on Saturday night, as they raced out to a two-goal lead, including a power play tally from Freshman Hobey Baker Nominee Collin Graf, his twelfth goal of the year. However, Colgate scored on a 5-on-3 midway through the second period and scored twice in the third to complete the comeback. Quinnipiac had the goalie pulled for over three minutes to end the game but could not find an equalizer.
This is the first time the Bobcats have lost back-to-back games since March 20 and 27, 2021. I chalk it up to a slight regression to the mean and wouldn't worry too much about their chances for success the rest of the season.
Minnesota and Michigan Split Crazy Series at Mariucci
If you want to get into college hockey this season, watch Minnesota play. All the Gophers do is play in exciting series' at home, including trading a pair of overtime games against Michigan this weekend.
On Friday night, Matthew Knies, Jackson LaCombe, Jimmy Snuggerud, and Logan Cooley combined for ten points (four goals, six assists). Knies was the overtime hero for the Gophers, scoring on the power play with eight seconds left in the extra frame.
On Saturday night, Michigan shut down those four players. The quartet combined for just two assists and went a combined -9 in the game. The game went back and forth. Michigan scored two goals in the opening eight minutes, the Gophers responded with three-straight goals, and then Michigan fought back with two unanswered of their own. Bryce Brodzinski provided late-game heroics when he scored the game-tying goal with just 2:42 to play, his second goal of the game. Jacob Truscott got the last laugh, however, as he scored the game-winning goal in overtime off a nice feed from Luke Hughes.
The Gophers have played in seven overtime games so far this season, including four in their last five.
St. Cloud Dominates Denver in Top-4 Showdown
Photo by Kaitlyn Zeuhl (SCSU Athletics)
St. Cloud State has played some tough opponents in the second half of the season so far. After a split against #2 Minnesota a few weeks ago, the Huskies played host to #3 Denver this weekend. They have thoroughly impressed so far.
St. Cloud dominated with a 7-3 win on Friday night followed by a 2-0 win on Saturday and are now first in the NCHC standings. 15 of 20 players had a point for St. Cloud on Friday night, five of which tallied multiple points. On Saturday, Jack Okabe scored his 15th goal of the season and Jami Krannila posted two assists.
Despite being 6th in goals per game this season (3.7/game) this is the third time this season Denver has been shut out. The Pios will have a chance to right the ship next weekend in a home-and-home with Colorado College as the two begin their Battle for the Gold Pan. Denver is hosting their end of the series at Ball Arena (home of the Colorado Avalanche), so the atmosphere should be electric on Friday night.
Minnesota State Survives Lake Superior, Keeps Pace in CCHA
In a near must-win series to keep pace with Bowling Green and Michigan Tech in the CCHA, Minnesota State-Mankato barely held on in a home sweep over Lake Superior State.
The two teams played it close, all but eight seconds of play was either tied or within one goal. The Mavericks won Friday night's game in overtime, as Akito Hirose scored on a scramble in front of the net.
Hirose was the hero again on Saturday night, scoring the game-winning goal nearly four minutes into the start of the third period. The junior defenseman has scored a goal in his last three games. The Mavericks trailed Lake Superior for over 11 minutes in the second period, much of this due to Ethan Langenegger holding down the fort for the Lakers.
Minnesota State now sits in second place in the CCHA, trailing Bowling Green by two points. The Falcons split with St. Thomas this weekend with a shootout win on Friday night.
Hockey East Race Heating Up
The three top teams in Hockey East (Northeastern, Boston University, and Connecticut) all swept their respective series this weekend. All three teams are within two points of each other for first place in Hockey East.
Northeastern (34 points) swept then first-place Merrimack in a home-and-home series, 5-1 on the road on Friday night and 1-0 at home on Saturday. Aiden McDonough scored the game-winner on Saturday night with just 92 seconds left in the game.
Boston University (32 points) swept Maine at home with 5-1 and 9-6 wins. Five different Terriers had three or more points in Saturday night's nine-goal outburst. Hobey Baker Nominee Matt Brown led the offensive clinic with 6 points on the weekend (2G, 4A) and currently is tied for 4th in the nation with 34 points on the season.
Connecticut (32 points) had some difficulty in a home-and-home series with Massachusetts, however they prevailed with a 4-3 road overtime win on Friday night and a 3-1 win at Toscano Forum, the Huskies new $70-million barn, on Saturday night.
NCHC Standings
T-1. St. Cloud State: Swept Denver at home with 7-3, 2-0 wins. (29 Points)
T-1. Denver: Swept by St. Cloud on the road with 7-3, 2-0 losses. (29 Points)
3. Omaha: Swept Miami at home with 4-1, 2-0 wins. (27 Points)
4. Western Michigan: Swept Colorado College on the road with 4-1, 4-1 wins. (25 Points)
5. Colorado College: Swept by Western Michigan at home with 4-1, 4-1 losses. (20 Points)
6. Minnesota-Duluth: Split with North Dakota on the road with 4-2 loss, 2-1 win. (16 Points)
7. North Dakota: Split with Minnesota-Duluth at home with 4-2 win, 2-1 loss. (15 Points)
8. Miami: Swept by Omaha on the road with 4-1, 2-0 losses. (7 Points)
Big Ten Standings
1. Minnesota: Split with Michigan at home with 4-3 OT win, 5-4 OT loss. (37 Points)
T-2. Ohio State: Split with Wisconsin on the road with 4-0 loss, 2-0 win. (27 Points)
T-2. Penn State: Split with Notre Dame at home with 2-1 loss, 3-2 win. (27 Points)
4. Michigan State: No games scheduled. (24 Points)
5. Notre Dame: Split with Penn State on the road with 2-1 win, 3-2 loss. (20 Points)
6. Michigan: Split with Minnesota on the road with 4-3 OT loss, 5-4 OT win. (18 Points)
7. Wisconsin: Split with Ohio State at home with 4-0 win, 2-0 loss. (9 Points)
CCHA Standings
1. Bowling Green: Split with St. Thomas on the road with 4-2 loss, 3-3 SO win. (37 Points)
2. Minnesota State: Swept Lake Superior at home with 3-2 OT win, 3-1 win. (35 Points)
3. Michigan Tech: Split with Ferris State on the road with 1-0 win, 3-3 SO loss. (32 Points)
4. Bemidji State: Split with Northern Michigan at home with 4-0 win, 5-2 loss. (28 Points)
5. Ferris State: Split with Michigan Tech at home with 1-0 loss, 3-3 SO win. (25 Points)
T-6. Northern Michigan: Split with Bemidji State on the road with 4-0 loss, 5-2 win. (21 Points)
T-6. St. Thomas: Split with Bowling Green at home with 4-2 win, 3-3 SO loss. (21 Points)
8. Lake Superior: Swept by Minnesota State with 3-2 OT loss, 3-1 loss. (11 Points)
Hockey East Standings
1. Northeastern: Swept Merrimack with 5-1 road win, 1-0 home win. (34 Points)
T-2. Boston University: Swept Maine at home with 5-1, 9-6 wins. (32 Points)
T-2. Connecticut: Swept Massachusetts with 4-3 OT road win, 3-1 home win. (32 Points)
4. Merrimack: Swept by Northeastern with 5-1 home loss, 1-0 road loss. (30 Points)
5. Providence: No games scheduled. (26 Points)
6. UMass-Lowell: Swept New Hampshire with 6-2 home win, 3-2 OT road win. (25 Points)
7. Boston College: "Swept" by Vermont at home with 1-1 SO loss, 3-2 loss. (20 Points)
T-8. Maine: Swept by Boston University on the road with 5-1, 9-6 losses. (12 Points)
T-8 Massachusetts: Swept by Connecticut with 4-3 OT home loss, 3-1 road loss. (12 Points)
10. Vermont: "Swept" Boston College on the road with 1-1 SO win, 3-2 win. (11 Points)
11. New Hampshire: Swept by UMass-Lowell with 6-2 road loss, 3-2 OT home loss. (9 Points)
ECAC Standings
1. Quinnipiac: Lost to Cornell on the road 4-0, lost to Colgate on the road 3-2. (36 Points)
2. Harvard: Beat Yale 3-2 OT on the road, lost to Brown 3-2 on the road. (29 Points)
3. Cornell: Beat Quinnipiac at home 4-0, beat Princeton at home 3-2. (28 Points)
4. Colgate: Beat Princeton at home 5-0, beat Quinnipiac at home 3-2. (25 Points)
5. Princeton: Lost to Colgate on the road 5-0, lost to Cornell on the road 3-2. (20 Points)
T-6. St. Lawrence: Lost to Union on the road 3-2, lost to Rensselaer on the road 4-3 OT. (18 Points)
T-6. Clarkson: Lost to Rensselaer on the road 3-2 OT, beat Union at home 4-3. (18 Points)
8. Brown: Lost to Dartmouth at home 4-3, beat Harvard at home 3-2. (16 Points)
T-9. Rensselaer: Beat Clarkson at home 3-2 OT, beat St. Lawrence at home 4-3 OT. (14 Points)
T-9. Union: Beat St. Lawrence at home 3-2, lost to Clarkson on the road 4-3. (14 Points)
11. Dartmouth: Beat Brown on the road 4-3, beat Yale on the road 4-0. (12 Points)
12. Yale: Lost to Harvard at home 3-2 OT, lost to Dartmouth at home 4-0. (10 Points)
Atlantic Hockey Standings
1. RIT: Swept Arizona State on the road with 5-1, 5-3 wins. (40 Points)
2. Sacred Heart: "Swept" Holy Cross at home with 2-2 SOW, 4-1 wins. (36 Points)
3. American International: Split with Mercyhurst on the road with 4-1 loss, 2-1 OT win. (31 Points)
4. Mercyhurst: Split with AIC at home with 4-1 win, 2-1 OT loss. (25 Points)
T-5. Holy Cross: "Swept" by Sacred Heart with 2-2 SO, 4-1 losses. (22 Points)
T-5. Army: No games scheduled. (20 Points)
7. Niagara: Split with Air Force on the road with 6-3 loss, 2-1 win. (20 Points)
8. Canisius: Split on the road with Bentley with 5-1 win, 2-2 SO loss. (17 Points)
9. Bentley: Split with Canisius at home with 5-1 loss, 2-2 SO win. (14 Points)
10. Air Force: Split with Niagara at home with 6-3 win, 2-1 loss. (10 Points)
Independent Roundup
Alaska: No games scheduled.
Alaska-Anchorage: No games scheduled.
Arizona State: Swept by RIT at home - 5-1 loss on Friday, 5-3 loss on Saturday.
Lindenwood: Swept by Long Island on the road - 3-2 overtime loss on Friday, 6-4 loss on Saturday.
Long Island: Swept Lindenwood at home - 3-2 overtime win on Friday, 6-4 win on Saturday.
Stonehill: No games scheduled.
