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. Read the rest of this entry »

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With all due respect to Massachusetts sophomore defenseman Conor Allen, who picked up a hat trick against Holy Cross on Friday night, a few other players around the league have managed a better few games over the last few weekends. This list includes one of Allen’s teammates and an opponent of his next Saturday.

Joe Cannatta, Senior, Goaltender, Merrimack

Friday’s win over Boston University capped an 8-0-1 start and gave the Warriors the win over the Hockey East powerhouse it needed to legitimize itself in the eyes of some. In the win, Cannatta made 36 saves and overcame a pair of first period goals allowed. Through eight games played this season, Cannatta is 7-0-1 with .940 save percentage and a 1.48 goals-against average. Many wondered if the Warriors would be able to build on least year’s best season in program history. Through nine total games, the undefeated Warriors look better than they did a season ago, and Cannatta is a big reason for that. Read the rest of this entry »

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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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While everyone in North Andover, Mass., was freaking out because Merrimack did not overtake the top in either national poll, I spent the day informing people of two things: polls are stupid and the Warriors are in great position in the Hockey East standings (second place) and the PairWise (first), which are still the only two metrics that matter.

Merrimack is good, but skepticism is valid 

In September, I pegged Merrimack to finish third behind Boston University and Boston College. I wavered back and forth between a third-place finish and a fourth-place landing, ultimately putting the Warriors third, Maine fourth and New Hampshire fifth. With this, I was really making two pretty big predictions with Merrimack building on last season and UNH’s run of home ice ending.

We have roughly four months of hockey left this season, but I’m looking pretty good — except with the whole thinking Maine’s goaltending wouldn’t be terrible thing.

Friday’s comeback, overtime win at BU cemented the Warriors as one of the two best teams in Hockey East. However, that win over BU, which helped Merrimack improve to 8-0-1, was Merrimack’s first win over what someone could describe a “good” hockey team — and that word only applies if you consider “wildly talented” a synonym for “good.” Knocking Maine off in the season-opener may qualify as well, if only because it was the first game of the season and no one knew Dan Sullivan and Martin Ouellette would be this bad. Read the rest of this entry »

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Boston College took down Northeastern University Friday night at Conte Forum 2-1. BC is now 7-1-0 in conference play, while Northeastern is still looking for its second win of the season at 1-6-2.

The Huskies took an early lead in the first period but couldn’t maintain as BC evened the score in the second and sealed the deal with a last second goal from Tommy Cross with under three seconds to play.

What I saw

Northeastern’s defense was clearing puck after puck in the first period. When it came to the second and third periods, they were clearing less and couldn’t push BC back once they got the puck in front of Rawlings.

BC obliterated Northeastern in shots. The Eagles basically doubled Northeastern’s shot number each period, giving them a 36 to 18 shot advantage at the end of the game. The BC defense looked significantly more aggressive than Northeastern’s. Read the rest of this entry »

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BOSTON — Merrimack remained unbeaten with a come-from-behind 3-2 overtime win against Boston University on Friday night. Goals from Garrett Noonan and Justin Courtnall staked the Terriers (3-4-1, 2-3-1 HE) to a 2-1 lead, but the Warriors (8-0-1, 6-0-1 HE) fought through a slew of penalties and tied the game with 1:56 remaining when Brandon Brodhag tipped home a Jordan Heywood slapper. They captured their second overtime victory in a row with another tip-in, as Billerica native Connor Toomey deflected a Karl Stollery wrister past Kieran Millan (27 saves) just 22 seconds into the extra session. Joe Cannata made 36 saves for Merrimack.

What I saw

-Merrimack’s freshmen finally found the scoresheet. Through the first eight games of the season, the Warriors had zero points from their rookie class. That changed with the first goal of the game when Arlington native Justin Mansfield chipped a rebound past Millan. Then of course there was the game-winner from Toomey, another freshman. Mansfield and Toomey, along with fellow freshmen Clayton Jardine and Dan Kolomatis, have been playing well this season; they just hadn’t scored yet. If they can build on Friday night and continue to be productive, Merrimack could make the jump from a middle-of-the-pack offense to one of the league’s best. Read the rest of this entry »

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For the first time all season, there has been a change at the top of my WCHA Power Rankings. Here they are for you to enjoy:

1 — Minnesota (Last week: 2)

All facets of the Gopher game are rolling right now. They head to Kohl Center this weekend with a chance to dagger a rival for the second weekend in a row.

2 — Colorado College (Last week: 1)

Every once in a while, Joe Howe plays a game where all you can do is scratch your head and wonder, “why?” His effort last Friday in a 7-5 loss to UNO was one of those games.

3 — Minnesota Duluth (Last week: 3)

The Bulldogs are finally looking like defending champs after taking three points from Denver at Magness Arena. That has a chance to be one of those series you look back at in March.

4 — Nebraska-Omaha (Last week: 5)

John Faulkner was bailed out by Dayne Belfour and the Maverick offense in the third period last Friday after he allowed four goals on just 16 shots in 40 minutes. That earned him a spot on the bench Saturday — something that happened just a handful of times last season.

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We’re entering the second week of conference play for AHA teams. And this week features some games that should be fun to watch, including the only two AHA teams that have yet to lose a game in conference play.

When Robert Morris travels to Mercyhurst on Friday it’ll be a battle of the special teams. The Colonials have the best penalty kill in the nation, clicking along at 95 percent. The Lakers have the second best power play in the conference, seventh in the nation, at 26 percent. Read the rest of this entry »

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A month into the season, Merrimack and Boston College appear to be head and shoulders above the rest of Hockey East. After them, there’s a whole bunch of teams trying to break away from the pack and establish themselves as legitimate home-ice squads. Before I get to this week’s power rankings (which will be a weekly feature from here on), it’s worth noting that these rankings are where I see teams right now, not where I see them at the end of the season.

1. Merrimack (7-0-1, 5-0-1 HE)

Given that they’re the only unbeaten team left in the country, it should come as no surprise that the Warriors top this week’s rankings. They possess the nation’s best defense (1.25 goals against per game), led by senior goalie Joe Cannata and his league-leading .939 save percentage. The only knock on the Warriors is that they haven’t played anyone really good yet, although going 3-0-0 at Maine and Vermont (two places that are always tough to play) is pretty impressive.

2. Boston College (8-2-0, 6-1-0 HE)

The Eagles might’ve been No. 1 this week, but then they lost to UMass on Saturday. That game is more of an aberration than anything to actually be concerned about, but it’s just enough to drop them below Merrimack. The Eagles rank first or second in the conference in offense, defense, power play and penalty kill, so you’d have to do a lot of nitpicking to find a weakness here. Led by Chris Kreider (8-7-15) and Bill Arnold (7-7-14), BC has six players averaging a point per game or better. Read the rest of this entry »

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