From Ohio State’s two-game sweep of Michigan to Notre Dame’s thrilling overtime win against Boston College… what a weekend in the CCHA. As we head into Thanksgiving, here are some items worth mentioning:

• I got a first hand look at Miami, as the Red Hawks hosted Bowling Green over the weekend. On Halloween, Miami was struggling and at the bottom of the CCHA standings. Since? The RedHawks are unbeaten in six games, and senior goaltender Cody Reichard has started all six of those contests, seemingly taking over the No. 1 netminder position — a position that had been notably shared by Reichard and classmate Connor Knapp for the past three years.

• While Reichard has played better — his performance in Saturday’s 4-4 tie against Bowling Green notwithstanding — it was clear that the real impetus for change in Oxford over the past three weeks has been the play of Miami’s freshman forwards. (more…)

Killing some time before they kick me out of the Mariucci Arena press box tonight, here are some random thoughts on this weekend from around the WCHA.

• Nick Bjugstad is good. Really good. And with his size and skillset, he’s virtually unstoppable. Paired with Kyle Rau, Minnesota has the best line in the WCHA right now, bar none. Yes, Connolly-Oleksuk-Brown is rock solid. But these two guys in Minneapolis can flat out play and they complement each other perfectly. I will have a feature story on Bjugstad on the website either Sunday or Monday.

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DURHAM, N.H — In what was billed as one of the most intriguing matchups of the weekend, New Hampshire outplayed UMass Lowell to the tune of a 5-0 shutout victory. The River Hawks were looking for a rare four-game winning streak against the likes of BU, Maine and UNH but came up short in effort and will be looking for a rebound game against sister school Massachusetts, Saturday night. UNH got a strong effort in net from Matt Di Girolamo who made 31 saves in the shutout effort.

What I saw

• UNH did a great job defensively stifling the top ranked offense in Hockey East. It was another effort which saw forwards and defensemen alike blocking shots. Most of the 31 sent to Di Girolamo were perimeter and points shots that Di Girolamo saw.

• UMass-Lowell played arguably its worst game of the year. Offensively, the River Hawks were flat and just could not get into the middle of the ice to send quality shots toward Di Girolamo. What came in as the best offense in the Hockey East left Durham as the fifth ranked offense in the league after being shutout. (more…)

BOSTON — The one-game benching, suspension, timeout — whatever you want to call it — for Boston University goaltender Kieran Millan meant fellow senior Grant Rollheiser would get his second start of the season. Ultimately, he earned his second win of the season, making 31 saves in a 4-3 win over a struggling Vermont team Friday night.

Ten different players recorded points in the win, with only sophomore winger Matt Nieto picking up more than one — he finished with two assists. BU sophomore Garrett Noonan scored the game-winning goal at 16 minutes, 42 seconds of the third period. However, BU coach Jack Parker was rightfully displeased with his club’s performance in the final period, as the Terriers regressed to their selfish ways in allowing the Catamounts to find their way back into the game.

What I saw

• Scoring a couple goals on the Vermont power play hardly resonates as a massive accomplishment. Still, the Terriers finished the game two-for-five on the man advantage, including Noonan’s game-winner late in the second. BU moved the puck well on most of its power plays and successfully created opportunities from the point and down low. Beyond that, they managed to maintain pressure after failing to score. Wade Megan’s goal midway through the second came just as UVM’s H.T. Lenz left the box after a boarding minor. In their last two games, the Terriers have scored on four of 10 power players, they were were five for 45 with the man advantage. (more…)

If there was any doubt about St. Cloud State’s goaltending situation before St. Cloud State’s 4-3 win over No. 1 Minnesota Friday night, there sure isn’t much anymore.

After an injury to SCSU’s Mike Lee last month — an injury which will likely cost the junior his season — the Huskies were forced to turn things over to Ryan Faragher, a freshman from Fort Frances, Ont. via the North American Hockey League.

And the freshman has responded.

“When Mike went down, we didn’t really know what was going to happen,” admitted junior forward David Eddy, who had three assists Friday. “But he’s stepped up huge. Bigger than we expected. He makes saves where you’re just like ‘Wow, how did he do that?’ He made a couple of those tonight.”

Faragher playing well has become somewhat redundant in the Granite City. It seems to be a topic that comes up for head coach Bob Motzko each week.

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It’s almost Thanksgiving and Minnesota State is ahead of North Dakota in the league standings… who-da thunk it?

Anyways, here are this week’s power rankings:

1 — Minnesota (Last week: 1)

The Gophers did their job last weekend, getting two points on the road at the Kohl Center. And because other teams in the top-5 struggled, Minnesota remains the top team in the nation — and deservedly so. They get tested with yet another rivalry series this weekend and a home-and-home with SCSU.

2 — Minnesota Duluth (Last week: 3)

The Bulldogs are 6-0-2 since getting swept by the Gophers to open the league schedule. Both losses to Minnesota were one goal losses where UMD posted 50 shots. This team is a lot better than most gave them credit for and will likely stick with the Gophers all season.

3 — Colorado College (Last week: 2)

The Tigers are holding in the top-3 by a thread after losing 2 of their last 3 games. Joe Howe has been destroyed in each of those two losses, living up to his reputation as a great goalie… most of the time. He has shown a tendency to get lit up every once in a while, and so far this season, it’s no different.

4 — Nebraska-Omaha (Last week: 4)

Last Friday, Bemidji State scored a late goal to gain a tie in its game with UNO, and it looked like the Beavers were going to haunt the Mavs yet again. So it had to be sweet for the Mavericks Saturday, winning 5-1 and getting their first win over Bemidji State since the two squads joined the league last season.

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After an interesting weekend of Hockey East action, we are again reminded that every game within Hockey East is going to be a battle.

Merrimack is the only undefeated team remaining in the country, but its the only Hockey East team off this weekend. In the lone non-conference game, Boston College heads out to South Bend, Ind., to play CCHA foe, and future Hockey East member, Notre Dame. This matchup will be crucial for Boston College, and the rest of the conference for that matter, in regards to the PairWise rankings and the future positioning thereof. (more…)

Another weekend is done and life in Atlantic Hockey got a little more blurry. Air Force and Mercyhurst, both previously unbeaten in league play, lost over weekend. The weekend also marked the return of Shane Madolora to net for RIT. But the end of the weekend also brought several surprises. Bentley sits in second place behind Air Force in the standings. While it may just be a strong start, these Falcons may be real. While we’re only two weekends into conference play, its easy to see that this is going to be a fun rest of the season.

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It was yet another weekend of unpredictable results in Hockey East, with UMass-Lowell’s sweep of Maine and BU’s beatdown of BC standing out as the most surprising results. Meanwhile, Merrimack remained unbeaten with a victory at BU. There is a little more separation this week than last, but teams three through eight are all still packed together pretty tightly.

1. Merrimack (8-0-1, 6-0-1 HE) — Last week: 1

The still-undefeated Warriors hold onto the top spot after notching a come-from-behind overtime win against BU on Friday. Merrimack has now gone to overtime in three straight games, having picked up a win and tie against Northeastern two weekends ago. While the defense continues to be great — it hasn’t allowed more than two goals in a game yet this season — the offense has tallied just seven goals total in those last three games.

2. Boston College (9-3-0, 7-2-0 HE) — Last week: 2

The Eagles squeaked out a 2-1 win over Northeastern on Friday when Tommy Cross scored with 2.8 seconds remaining, but then they suffered a sobering 5-0 thrashing at the hands of BU on Sunday. Not that anyone on Chestnut Hill should be panicking, but BC has now lost two of its last three. Special teams, which had been a strength all season, were a big problem Sunday, as BU scored two power-play goals and a shorthanded goal. (more…)

Another weekend in the AHA is done and while its still early in the season, things are already muddled. The last two undefeated teams in conference play lost this weekend and the league appears to have more parity than past years. With surprise teams Bentley and Mercyhurst near the top of the standings, and teams like RIT and UConn struggling to start the season, the league is set for a fun season. The fun really began this past weekend.

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