DULUTH – Despite Notre Dame’s Steven Summerhays being ejected during the 3rd period, an impressive three-goal second period allowed Notre Dame just enough cushion to hold off Minnesota Duluth until the final horn sounded.  Each team played extremely marginal on their man-advantage attempts, but Notre Dame’s ability to get the puck on net allowed them to leave Amsoil Arena on Friday night, routing Minnesota Duluth, 3-2.

Although 5-on-5 play was undoubtedly very comparable, Minnesota Duluth won the first period by killing off a lengthy Caleb Herbert major penalty as Notre Dame seemed to be picking up speed.  Shots on goal finished 8-6 in favor of the Irish, but the scoreboard read 0’s at the end of the first.

UMD’s ability to counteract Notre Dame’s deep and talented offense seemed to subside as second period play started.  Jeff Costello buried his 3rd goal of the year, receiving a beautiful pass from Robbie Russo and wristing it by UMD netminder, Aaron Crandall.  Minnesota Duluth’s Cal Decowski responded minutes later, but Mario Lucia and Peter Schneider would both record second period goals, putting them in great position coming into the last period.

For lack of better words, shit hit the fan at 5:34 into the 3rd period when UMD captain Adam Krause was pushed into Summerhays, who didn’t appreciate the contact.  When all was said and down, both Krause and Andy Ryan received matching minors for roughing, and Summerhays was issued a facemasking major and a game misconduct.  Freshman Chad Katunar was thrown into net in replacement of Summerhays just as Minnesota Duluth was finding a great amount of momentum.  T.J. Tynan took a hooking minor just seconds later, adding to the anxiety of Notre Dame’s freshman tender, allowing Andy Welinski to blast a shot from up top to draw the Bulldogs within one goal.

Unfortunately for Minnesota Duluth, the tying goal was never found and Notre Dame improved to 5-0-0, their best start under coach Jeff Jackson and Minnesota Duluth fell  2-2-1.

What I Saw

For the most part, intense hockey.  Notre Dame brought what was anticipated – a deep, quick moving offense and a solid d-core to back them up.  It wasn’t until the second period when the Fighting Irish really let-loose, outshooting UMD 15-7 and playing as though they were a man-up for most of the period.

Minnesota Duluth countered Notre Dame’s offense with their own ability to skate with speed and agility.  UMD was able to win a grinding first period, but lost momentum in the second period, which eventually ended up losing the game for the home team.  Third period play looked completely different than a period before, and had they played that way all night, the score would have looked a little differently.

What I Thought

Notre Dame is a very dangerous team.  They established their dominance from the very first few minutes.  They literally have every tool needed to win games – a deep offense who can move the puck efficiently and score, a defense core that can protect the blueline, but also forfeit their bodies to protect against opponent shots on net, and a goalie who has the ability to make jaw-dropping saves.  Hockey East may just be in for a real treat with this team.

Minnesota Duluth was the obvious underdog heading into this one.  Their speed kept them in the game and could have potentially won it for them as well had they played all 60 minutes.  Aaron Crandall, who was originally thought to be the backup netminder for UMD behind Matt McNeely, played outstanding.  He gave up a few bad rebounds, but made up for it by standing on his head, especially during the Herbert-major.

What They Said

Notre Dame coach Jeff Jackson said,

“It was a hard fought game and wasn’t much different than I expected it to be.  Two teams that skate rather well, but for the most part I thought we did a good job.”

“(We) took that penalty in the third period that could have cost us the game, but our guys responded.  Throw a freshman in for his first minutes as a college hockey player, in that environment, in that situation, it’s amazing that we got through it actually.”

Minnesota Duluth coach Scott Sandelin said,

“We had a good third period and I liked our first period as well, and our second felt like we were killing penalties the whole period.  We’ve just got to try and play more than 40 minutes a night.”

What Else You Should Know

The puck drops at 8:07 EDT tonight for round two.  If you remember from last weekend, Notre Dame beat Michigan Tech 3-2 on Friday before blowing Saturday night’s game apart with a 7-3.  On the otherside, UMD fell last Friday but came back flying, routing Colorado College 5-1.  If both team’s play a full 60 minutes, it should make for a great college hockey game.

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The influence of Notre Dame on Hockey East remains to be seen. It likely won’t be realized fully for a few years. In the early going, though, the Fighting Irish’s impact is clearly in level of competition. Notre Dame’s first four games cemented what most already new — its a very real contender for championships.

A handful of teams are in the race for regional and national success, and Notre Dame is as much a factor as anyone.

On the other side of Hockey East, the league’s bottom-dwellers have looked fairly promising in some regards as well. They’re as imperfect as any team in the country, but it’s still going to make Hockey East play as grueling as any league in the nation.

1. Notre Dame (4-0-0; 0-0-0 Hockey East)

Notre Dame rolled through Michigan Tech last weekend. The Huskies put up a fight on Friday night before UND dropped them, 7-3, on Sunday. The Fighting Irish have as deep a group of forwards as anyone in the country. Moreover, their defensive game and goaltending have been predictably strong thus far. Tougher opponents await UND, but it’s clear it can compete with anyone.

This Weekend: (Friday and Saturday at Minnesota-Duluth) Read the rest of this entry »

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Half the conference has still not played a game yet, so the Power Rankings are still a work in progress. We should have a better idea next week of who the strongest teams are in the conference.  Quinnipiac looked impressive over the weekend against UMass-Lowell, while teams like Union, Colgate and St. Lawrence looked the opposite. Make sure to check out the ECAC Three Things I Think, as it will give you even more insight on what I think is happening in the conference. Read the rest of this entry »

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This past weekend wasn’t as impressive as the weekend before within the conference but Quinnipiac had an impressive weekend and looked good in a sweep of UMass-Lowell. The Ivies will begin play this weekend with Yale, Dartmouth, Princeton and Brown all participating in the Liberty Hockey Invitational at the Prudential Center, in Newark New Jersey. Cornell will open its season with a pair against Nebraska-Omaha, while Harvard opens its season against Bentley for the second straight season. Having these teams playing will give more options in next week’s edition but in hindsight there are still some major trends that stood out for me over the weekend.

Is it time to panic in Schenectady? Read the rest of this entry »

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Making snap judgments after one weekend is a recipe for disaster. Or shows we’re human. Remember the whole “Big Ten did not embarrass themselves” narrative I wrote about opening weekend last week? That flipped faster than a virtual banner. It was an ugly Friday night on the road for anyone not named Minnesota. Penn State looked like a team developing against Air Force. Michigan State was overmatched against Massachusetts. Wisconsin…well the Badgers learned the Boston College goal celebration.

In fact, Wisconsin left Boston losing games to the Eagles and Boston University by a combined 16-5. Not quite the results the Badgers (nor the Big Ten, which went 3-6-1) were looking to get. Fortunately, a new narrative is always a week or two away.

(After the jump, Ohio State missing Brady Hjelle, Sam Warning’s early success and Michigan went 1-0-1 on the big Whittmore Center ice.) Read the rest of this entry »

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The most surprising development of the weekend wasn’t the sweeps delivered by and to Massachusetts and Massachusetts-Lowell. It wasn’t the hard-fought decisions between Michigan and Durham or the split Merrimack played to with Mercyhurst. No, the 16 total goals Boston College and Boston University dropped on Big Ten foe Wisconsin dominated conversation after the games were done.

BC and BU played two very different games against the Badgers with the Eagles dominating UW completely. The Terriers, meanwhile, scored seven goals on just 26 shots in their 7-3 win. Ultimately, all that matters is the score, and the Terriers did plenty of scoring after losing, 3-1, to Rensselaer on Friday.

It’s not often Wisconsin — or any team — allows 16 goals in a two-game span. However, it did reveal some potential truths in Hockey East. Both BC and BU can score goals, even if they don’t have the puck all that much. Last Sunday, BC scored seven goals against RPI despite getting just 23 shots on goal. Both BC coach Jerry York and first-year BU boss Dave Quinn will take wins however they can get them. Both conceded after those games that they can’t expect those type of results to happen often. For Wisconsin, Saturday’s loss was a bit easier to handle than Friday’s. Oushooting BU 43-26 was a good sign. Allowing seven goals on 26 shots, especially when recording 43, suggests the Badgers got a bit unlucky at Agganis Arena.

Not time to worry for Lowell

Three losses in four games wasn’t the start Norm Bazin wanted. This isn’t foreign to Bazin’s Lowell teams, though. In 2011-12, the River Hawks were 2-3-0 in October. Last season, they were 4-7-1 in their first 11 games. The 2013-14 edition is, of course, a different team. There’s no way to say this club will bounce back with any certainty, but history suggests this slow start is hardly a death sentence for the team.

UML still hasn’t played a Hockey East game, so the 1-3-0 start hasn’t hurt its chances of a strong league record. Moreover, plenty of games remain against other potential NCAA Tournament teams, so there’s still time to put together a strong resume in the regard. Additionally, the River Hawk players expected to have big seasons are no strangers to difficult starts of their own. Scott Wilson is goalless through four games thus far, just as he was a season ago.

Both Doug Carr and Connor Hellebuyck have been fine in their starts. UML is in Michigan this weekend for games with Michigan State and Michigan. A strong showing out west is exactly what UML needs to put a troubling first four games behind it just as Hockey East play gets going in early November.

Goaltending battle brewing in Durham

Like UMass-Lowell, New Hampshire hasn’t started the season as well at it hoped with just one win. Also like the River Hawks, the Wildcats are still in fine shape as the season’s third weekend approaches. Goals are the issue for UNH with two or fewer in each of their last three games. Keeping UNH in games to this point has been strong defensive play led by goaltenders Casey DeSmith and Jeff Wyer. DeSmith was the guy last year, starting 38 of 42 games. UNH coach Dick Umile opted to open the job to a competition this season, and both look ready to challenge for the spot.

Wyer’s been a bit better thus far with a .962 save percentage and a 0.96 goals-against average compared to DeSmith’s .913 and 2.98. Umile will likely keep rotating his goaltenders for the time being. Wyer’s been great, but DeSmith’s track record means he’ll get every chance to fight for minutes.

Eventually, one will become the guy. None of it will matter if the Wildcats don’t start scoring goals. This is UNH, though. The offense will come at some point. Dalton Speelman is goalless through four games as is Grayson Downing. Talented freshman Tyler Kelleher scored in his first game and more should follow. If the Wildcats’ goaltending continues to impress, their inevitable goal-scoring form will make them a force nationally.

Notre Dame’s scoring depth might be league’s best

Consecutive sweeps of Western Michigan and Michigan Tech were exactly what Notre Dame wanted from its first four games. And the club’s success has looked exactly as expected. Steven Summerhays has been strong in goal, and scoring has come from everywhere. Six different players have at least four points with freshman Vince Hinostroza (three goals and three assists) leading the way.

The Irish have room to grow even further. Senior Bryan Rust is yet to score while sophomore Thomas di Pauli has just one point. As the Fighting Irish improve, their offense is only going to generate more goals. Within Hockey East, every contender should boast similar depth eventually. Finding it already is a great sign for Notre Dame, especially with so many experienced players as part of their nucleus.

Seven players finished the season with at least 20 points for Notre Dame last year. That number should grow even further this season. Hockey East is a league dominated by goaltending. When league play begins, goals will be at a premium. Notre Dame is dealing with the same early year rust as every one else, and they’re still averaging more than four goals per game to this point. Once line combinations settle, the Irish could be a devastating offensive club.

The strength of Hockey East, paired with the Fighting Irish’s general lack of experience with the league, made it difficult to peg UND early in the season.

Hockey East play doesn’t begin for two more weeks, but Notre Dame should be able to enter that series at Vermont on a high note. They’re off to Duluth next weekend for a pair of games with the Bulldogs. A split with UMD and a 5-1-0 start is a very real possibility for the club.

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Durham, NH- The game was as evenly played as possible and the weekend was as a whole as well. On Friday night, UNH dominated long stretches of play in route to a 1-1 tie. On this night, despite the 35-24 shot advantage to Michigan, stalemate was the best adjective one could find to describe this game.

UNH opened the scoring at six minutes, 18 seconds of the first period when Trevor van Riemsdyk sent an innocent looking point shot towards the net, which Kevin Goumas tipped into the net to give UNH the early lead. The goal was the first of the season for Goumas, who saw limited action last weekend because of an oblique injury. Alex Guptill answered about three minutes later on the power-play when he was left untouched of Casey Desmith and put it past him to send it into the first intermission tied at 1.

The second period was much of the same, as the teams each had 12 shots on net. Michigan took the lead, on the power-play four minutes into the period as Luke Moffatt found a puck at Desmith’s feet that he put behind him for the 2-1 lead. UNH answered later in the period to send it into the second intermission tied at two. It stayed that way through another stalemate period and the team’s entered the overtime tied, for the second night in a row.

Unlike last night this one would have a winner. Freshman, JT Compher went around the back of the net found a trailing Derek Deblois in the slot who took a shot. Casey Desmith left a rebound to his stick side which Tyler Motte found and was true to give Michigan the 3-2 overtime victory over UNH. Michigan improves to 3-0-1 on the season, while UNH falls to 1-2-1. Read the rest of this entry »

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Lowell, Mass – UML and Quinnipiac were both Frozen Four participants last season, but they didn’t play each other . You couldn’t tell by the play on the ice. After a scoreless first period where Quinnipiac dominated play, the Bobcats came out in the second and stifled a good Lowell team, holding them 0-5 on the power-play and limiting them to no quality chances.

Jordan Samuel-Thomas opened the scoring at two minutes, three seconds of the second on a beautiful slot to slot pass from Peter Quenneville leaving the former with nothing but a wide open net to shoot at. QU took a 2-0 lead seven minutes later as Connor Clifton sent a point shot in that deflected off of Connor Jones into the net. The Bobcats finished the scoring in the second at 13:25 of the period when Derek Smith’s point shot beat Connor Hellebuyck to give Quinnipiac the 3-0 second intermission lead.

It was much of the same in the third period, as Lowell turned it up a bit scoring an early third period goal but they would eventually fall  3-1 to the Bobcats. Lowell falls 1-2-0 on the young season, while Quinnipiac improves to 2-1-0. Read the rest of this entry »

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It is a bit early to be doing Power Rankings, but in all reality the season has to start at some point and no better time than right now. Many teams have begun the season, including Clarkson and Colgate who have combined to play 7 games already. Both of those teams have looked good in the early going and all the other teams that began last weekend looked good as well, as the conference has gone 10-4-1 in early non-conference action. To preface, the preseason rankings are the ones that will be seen on the ECAC preview article when it is released on the site. It has changed a bit in my mind, already but I have tried to keep teams, mainly the Ivy’s, that haven’t played in their positions. It was tough mainly because the teams that have played, looked really good. Read the rest of this entry »

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Hockey East coaches lauded realignment for several reasons. Primarily, they seemed pleased with fewer conference games in the season’s first few weeks. There was one league game last weekend with Boston University upending Massachusetts, 3-1. Saturday’s game between UMass and UMass-Lowell was a non-conference game, played as part of the series between the two schools for the Alumni Cup — awarded to the team that wins the annual three-game series.

The non-conference matchups around the league yielded some interesting results, especially with Providence’s sweep of Minnesota State and Sacred Heart’s unlikely win over UMass-Lowell. These early-season games don’t tell us too much about the teams around the country since clubs have so little time to prepare. However, their significance can’t be ignored. These games will come into play come Pairwise time. They don’t count in the league standings, but coaches and players want wins just the same.

Rankings:

1. Providence (2-0-0, 0-0-0 Hockey East)

The Friars’ success in 2013-14 depends upon greater contributions from a handful of players as well as even better goaltending from sophomore Jon Gillies. PC received both of those in a pair of wins over Minnesota State at the newly renovated Schneider Arena. Sophomore forward Mark Jankowski scored a pair of goals, as did sophomore defenseman John Gilmour and junior center Ross Mauermann. Gillies stopped 64 of 65 shots he saw over the weekend, earning a shutout in Saturday’s 3-0 win over the Mavericks. PC has a Hockey East championship and NCAA Tournament berth in its mind this season. Two wins over a Minnesota State likely to improve on last year’s season is a good start toward the latter.

This Weekend: Friday home against American International

2. Notre Dame (2-0-0; 0-0-0 Hockey East)

Holding Western Michigan without much production is hardly a difficult task, but the Fighting Irish managed to keep the Broncos scoreless altogether. UND swept the home-and-home pair with WMU with a suffocating defense and 44 total saves from senior Steven Summerhays. Offensive depth is a clear strength for the Irish. It revealed itself throughout the weekend. Seven players scored goals for UND in the wins. Meanwhile, senior defenseman Shayne Taker picked up four assists in the wins.

This Weekend: Friday and Sunday home against Michigan Tech

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