Running College Hockey Thread

Good call. My oversight, but I will say that I had spirited times at Michigan-OSU hockey games in college.

 

No question its spirited (better than having spnited times, I suppose), but doesn't compare to UM-MSU

 

As a former Michigan hockey beat writer, I don't think Ohio State is even in the top three of Michigan hockey rivals. For you, Slappy, I'd list it in this order:

Regular season
1. Michigan State
2. Notre Dame
3. Western Michigan
Honorable mention: Overcoming Antoine Pitts questions, Miami, Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech

Postseason
1. Boston U/Boston College (whichever is better that season)
2. Maine/New Hampshire (ditto)
3. Wisconsin/Minnesota (ditto II)
Honorable mention: Antoine again, Colorado College, North Dakota

I do miss Friday and Saturday nights inside Yost Ice Arena ... but not enough to leave SoFla.

Ta Ta

 

Well, since Wisconsin/Minnesota play Michigan/Michigan St. every year in the regular season PLUS often in the playoffs, that's got to boost them up.

As a Gophers fan and former beat writer, I always love the battle to decide who is the U of M.

 

Crazy game at Mariucci last night.

Mankato jumps out to a 3-0 lead on the Gophers by throwing four and five guys at the net.

Minnesota responds with just a lethal power play, scoring on five of six chanes to rip off a 5-3 lead.

mankato then gets one late in the third, and another with less than a minute to play and their net empty to tie the game at five.

Overtime's scoreless.

Oh yeah, there was a huge fight/scrum/donnybrook after a Gopher was driven hard into the Mankato goaltender, who threw his glove off and skated to the bench with blood all over his hand.

 

It does boost them, Zeke ... come playoff time. Those games are nice to win in the preseason, but don't carry a ton of meaning.

 

Well, they aren't in the preseason, and they carry as much weight in the PWR as any other win.

But besides that, we're in complete agreement.

 

I think the top U.S. college team should play the top Canadian team at the end of the season. Sort of a bragging rights game.

Moncton & Alberta are ranked #1 and #2 this week. We have a national championship tournament. Don't know where it is this year.

 

JR --

That, or something similar to it, was done years ago -- I think it was the US National Champion and the top Canadian junior team, though.

Doesn't juniors have a fairly severe impact on the Canadian college talent pool?

Ah well, there's always World Juniors. The Gophers will be sending a bunch of players to the US, and UND will send its best player in Jonathon Toews.

 

Zeke
The majority of Canadian college hockey players are undrafted juniors.

They're probably not going to make pro at any level so they decide to get their degree plus they get to play hockey for four or five more years.

That's why it's always surprising to see a Canadian college hockey player make the NHL. (Steve Rucchin is the most high profile example--University of Western Ontario)

A lot of schools down East and out West have scholarship programs (usually your tuition) and the OHL has a program where they pay part of the kids post high school education. Huggy knows all the details.

 

Shitty weekend in Terrier Nation: fogout at BC Friday, 1-0 loss at Taj Agannis Saturday, and now this:

http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2006/12/04/News/Athletes.Hospitalized.After.Getting.jumped-2519656.shtml?sourcedomain=www.dailyfreepress.com&MIIHost=media.collegepublisher.com

(For those who aren't into the registration thing, three BU hockey players were attacked while leaving a postgame party at 4 a.m., with one injured enough to miss some time. A female lacrosse player was also injured.)

 

Cornell fans will tell you Cornell/Harvard is the biggest rivalry. Cornell fans are stupid.