Northeast Regional Wrap-Up

After losing to Boston University four times during the season, the Boston College Eagles defeated the Terriers for a second time in a game in which they dominated play.

After a 5-0 win on Friday night, Jerry York went to 8-0 in first round games at BC. The next night was no different.

Goaltneder Cory Schneider (pictured above) was the first goalteneder to have consecutive shutouts in the history of the NCAA tournament. Brian Elliott became the second goaltender to do that the next day.

After a 9-2 win over Nebraska-Omaha, Boston University was coming into the game looking for their first Frozen Four apperance since 1997.

They got denied however, BC shutout BU 5-0 thanks to great goaltending from Cory Schneider and two short-handed goals by Joe Rooney. The Eagles dominated play the entire game and outshot BU for the first time all season 31-28. BC will play North Dakota in semi-final #1 in a week from today Thursday, April 6 at 3 p.m. ET in Milwaukee. The other semi-final game will be between the Maine Black Bears and the Wisconsin Badgers at 8 p.m. ET.

All Regional Team

F- Brian Boyle, Boston College
F- Chris Higgins, Boston University
F- Joe Rooney, Boston College
D- Peter Harold, Boston College
D- Dan Spang, Boston University
G- Cory Schneider, Boston College (MVP)

Thats it for the regional wrap-ups. Tommorrow I will breakdown the top three Hobey Baker finalists and tell you who should win the award. Also starting this Saturday the Frozen Four team capsules will make its debut.

West Regional Wrap-Up

One of the biggest upsets in NCAA tournament history happened this past weekend in Grand Forks, ND as the Holy Cross Crusaders upset the #2 ranked team in the tournament the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Tyler McGregor (pictured above) scored the game winning goal just 53 seconds into overtime.

Holy Cross gave Atlantic Hockey its first ever win in the NCAA tournament, only to go down to host North Dakota the next night.

Even though Holy Cross did not make the Frozen Four, one can consider this the most successful Holy Cross team in their brief history of hockey. After all they also won the Atlantic Hockey Regular Season and Tournament titles. The Crusaders did the same thing in 2004 but lost to North Dakota in the first round.

The weekend however belonged to host North Dakota as they scored 10 goals this weekend 5-1 over Michigan and 5-2 over Holy Cross.

For North Dakota this will be their 21st apperance in the Frozen Four.

All West Regional Team:

F- Jonathan Toews, North Dakota (MVP)
F- Tyler McGregor, Holy Cross
F- Ryan Duncan, North Dakota
D- Matt Samby, North Dakota
D- Jon Landry, Holy Cross
G- Jordan Parise, North Dakota

Tommorrow the last regional the Northeast regional will be reviewed.

East Regional Wrap-Up

The Black Bears of the University of Maine took the East Regional this year and are headed to the Frozen Four. Maine had an impressive weekend scoring 11 goals in two games and also had some impressive goaltending from Freshman Ben Bishop.

Michigan State the #1 seed in this region should not be dissapointed with their efforts this weekend. The Spartans shutout New Hampshire on Saturday before losing to Maine on Sunday, but the future is looking bright for head coach Rick Comley and the rest of the team. Captain Drew Miller should return for his Senior season thus the Spartans will still have the leadership and the determination and could be one of the favorites in the CCHA next season.

Harvard was the most dissapointing team this weekend. After coming off a 16 goal outburst in the semis and the finals of the ECACHL tournament, the Crimson should have come more prepared for Maine. The Black Bears had their number all game and did not stop its relentless attack going for them. The Crimson gave up six goals in one of the worse defensive games they played all year. Final Score Maine 6 Harvard 1.

Maine continued to attack at all costs scoring three goals in the first period against Michigan State. The Spartans crawled there way back in the second. After trailing 4-1 in the second period, mostly everyone thought Michigan State could not come back. Well that was not the case as Tim Crowder and Jim McKenzie scored to make it a 4-3 game after two. The third period was a defensive period as goaltenders Jeff Lerg for Michigan State and Ben Bishop of Maine did very well. An empty net goal made it 5-3 for Maine. Michigan State scored one more past Bishop but it wasan't enough as the Black Bears won and earned a trip to Milwaukee to face the home state team the Wisconsin Badgers. It will be a tough test for the Black Bears as Wisconsin will have the home-ice advantage.

All Regional Team:

F- John Hopson, Maine (MVP)
F- Tim Crowder, Michigan State
F- Michel Leveille, Maine
D- Matt Duffy, Maine
D- Jared Nightingale, Michigan State
G- Ben Bishop, Maine

Tommorrow the West Regional will be reviewed.

Midwest Regional Wrap-Up

This years Midwest regional was the best regional in the tournament in which the Wisconsin Badgers won to earn a bid to the Frozen Four.

Wisconsin goaltender Brian Elliott was one of only two goaltenders who earned consecutive shutouts in the first two rounds in NCAA tournament history. A 4-0 win over Bemidji State and a classic triple overtime win over Cornell 1-0.

Colorado College was the big dissapointment in this regional. Having a 2-0 lead at the end of the first period, the Tigers could not hold the lead in the next two periods as Cornell shutout the highly powered Colorado College offense for the rest of the game. Cornell scored one in the second and two in the third for the 3-2 victory.

The Wisconsin Cornell game the next night was probably the best game this weekend. David McKee from Cornell and Brian Elliott from Wisconsin went back and forth and turned out into a game of who can top this. Elliott stopped all 40 Cornell shots, and David McKee stopped 59 shots from Wisconsin. But it was a 4 on 4 in which Jack Skille (goal pictured above) scored the game winning and only goal of the game from a great pass from Josh Engel as the Badgers won in their home state and earn a trip to Milwaulkee where the Badgers will have home ice advantage in the Frozen Four.

All Midwest Regional Team:

F- Matt Moulson, Cornell
F- Marty Seritch, Colorado College
F- Joe Pavelski, Wisconsin
D- Tom Gilbert, Wisconsin
D- Sasha Pokulok, Cornell
G- Brian Elliott, Wisconsin

Tommorrow we will review the East Regional.

Foreshadowing the Frozen Four

The Road to Milwaulkee begins tonight when regional play begins. Since I already picked the regional winners, lets do a little foreshadowing.

The matchups would be Wisconsin vs Michigan State and North Dakota vs Boston University.

So lets breakdown the matchups.

Wisconsin vs Michigan State- Wisconsin goaltender Brian Elliott is back and that gives the Badgers the advantage. The fact that the Badgers get to play in their own state for regionals and the Frozen Four is a plus for them which gives them home ice basically. Michigan State has a good solid goaltender as well in Freshman Jeff Lerg. This would be a defensive game but I like the Badgers in this matchup.

Final Sccore- Wisconsin 2 Michigan State 1.

North Dakota vs Boston University- The Terriers dream season will continue to the Frozen Four. BU won the Beanpot, the Hockey East Regular Season and tournament, and will look to complete the sweep this weekend. North Dakota gets home ice in the regionals and that will be the key to making the Frozen Four. Last year the Fighting Sioux went to the East regional in Worcester and defeated BU and Boston College to advance to the Frozen Four. Jordan Parise gets better and better as the year progresses and this year was no different leading North Dakota to the WCHA tournament. I like the Fighting Sioux in this potential matchup.

Final Score- North Dakota 4 Boston University 3.

My National Championship game has Wisconsin and North Dakota. This would be a tremendous National Championship game. The Badgers and the Fighting Sioux are evenly matched in this one. Drew Stafford and T.J. Oshie will lead the balanced offensive attack for North Dakota while Robbie Earl and Joe Pavelski are the key offensive players for the Badgers. Lets not forget the goaltending matchup between two of the best goaltenders in the country, Wisconsin's Brian Elliott and North Dakota's Jordan Parise. In the end I like the Badgers with the home ice advantage in this game and they will take home the National Championship.

Final Score- Wisconsin 3 North Dakota 2 (OT).

Well there you have it my Frozen Four picks are in. Next week is an off week for College Hockey but not for hockeynuts. In fact within the couple of weeks there will be team capsules for the Frozen Four teams and I will pick my top three for the Hobey Baker award.

Northeast Regional Preview and Picks

The Northeast Regional in Worcester, MA is to most of us the toughest region to pick a winner. With host Boston University, Miami (Ohio), Boston College, and Nebraska-Omaha, this region has many possibilities of picking a winner for this regional. BU won the Hockey East regular season and tournament, Miami (Ohio) won the CCHA regular season, Boston College went to the finals of Hockey East, and Nebraska-Omaha pulled off some big wins toward the end of the year.

Now its time to breakdown the teams.

#1 Boston University- Ever since the return of David Van der Gulik on December 30, the Terriers have been playing the best hockey in the country going 19-2-2 in those 23 games that Van der Gulik has played in. John Curry is arguably one of the best walk-on goaltenders in the history of college hockey and this year he proved that last year was no fluke. This season Curry went 23-7-4 with a 2.16 goals against average and a.921 save percentage. The Terriers have defeated rival Boston College four times this year and swept Maine during the regular season. Can the Terriers keep the fire power going and make the Frozen Four for the first time since 1997? They got a really good shot I think.

#2 Miami- The Redhawks have the best defense in the country only giving up 1.9 goals per game. The reason behind that is the play of two goaltenders, Sophomore Charlie Effinger and Freshman Jeff Zatkoff and Defensmen Andy Greene and Matt Davis. The offense is reasonable with two 20 goal scorers in Nathan Davis and Ryan Jones. The Redhawks are a dangerous #2 seed, they are certainly capable of coming out of this region with a Frozen Four bid.

#3 Boston College- The youngest team in the country have had an up and down season but have lately climbed there way back up. With a Hockey East final apperance, the Eagles have some momentum going into the tournament, especially goaltender Cory Schneider who played great during the Hockey East tournament. If BC wants to go to the Frozen Four, they will need to get scoring from someone other than Brian Boyle and Chris Collins. Don't forget about the history though of BC knocking off #1 teams in the country going into the tournament. In 1999 the Eagles made the Frozen Four defeating #1 North Dakota and in 2000 they defeated #1 Wisconsin and from there went to the National Championship game. Head Coach Jerry York will have his team ready to go this weekend as his quest for a 6th Frozen Four with Boston College begins on Friday against Miami.

#4 Nebraska-Omaha- The Mavericks have one of the best offenses in the country and the reason why is behind Hobey Baker canidate and CCHA player of the year Scott Parse, who is currently second in the country in scoring. Parse is not the entire offense however, he has a lot of support in players such as Bill Thomas, Alex Nikiforuk, Bryan Marshall, and Tomas Klempa. The Defense might have a couple of question marks so in order to beat BU they will have to have a great game from goaltender Jerad Kaufmann. Can the Mavericks pull of the upset in their first ever NCAA tournament game against BU? Sit back relax and enjoy the ride it should be a good one.

Now lets predict the Northeast Region:

Boston University over Nebraska-Omaha
Miami over Boston College

Regional Final:

Boston University over Miami

Well thats it for regional previews. Tommorrow I will foreshadow the Frozen Four.

West Regional Preview and Picks

The West Regional will be held in Grand Forks, ND in the Ralph Engelstad Arena home of the North Dakota Fighting Sioux. This year the Sioux made the NCAA's so they get to play at the comfort of home rather than traveling.

This years version of the West Regional has three national powers, Michigan, Minnesota, and of course North Dakota. Minnesota is the one seed, but they were reward if they win, a road game basically if North Dakota can beat Michigan.

The other team in this region is Holy Cross. Last year Mercyhurst gave Boston College all they could handle, can their conference mate do the same thing to Minnesota?

Here is the breakdown of each team in this region.

#1 Minnesota- The Gophers were 13-0-1 in their previous 14 games prior to the WCHA semi-finals. A tough loss against St. Cloud State in overtime put them in the consolation game with Wisconsin and that did not go well either. The Gophers have many weapons with seven players scoring 10 or more goals, and lets not forget they have the leading goal scorer in the country in Junior Foward Ryan Poltuny who has 38 goals on the season. Lets not forget about Freshman Phenom Phil Kessel either who has 50 points on the year. Goaltending wise Kellen Briggs is solid, but he will have to forget about giving up 12 goals in his last two games including 8 against St. Cloud State. The question is which Gopher team will show up? If its the team who was unbeaten in the stretch run then they should make the Frozen Four, if it is the team who struggled in their last two games than it will be a dog fight till the end.

#2 North Dakota- Around this time of year is when the Fighting Sioux start to turn it on. They proved that last year when they beat Boston University and Boston College to make the Frozen Four in Worcester. Like mentioned earlier this is basically a home game for North Dakota as they host this region. 2nd year Head Coach Dave Hakstol has done a great job replacing Dean Blais which is not easy to do. Goaltender Jordan Parise again comes in as one of the top goaltenders in the country. Drew Stafford and T.J. Oshie lead a balanced attack on the Offense. The Sioux are playing in the comfort of home. Will that be an advantage to them? Hold on tight they should be exciting to watch.

#3 Michigan- This year was a rollercoaster ride for the Wolverines. They finished the season 21-14-5 and are 4-4 in their last eight games. T.J. Hensick is the leading scorer on the team. He has been the most dangerous threat to any team the past couple of seasons. Defensively the Wolverines struggled as they gave up nearly 3 goals a game. Goaltending is also an issue as the Wolverines had to replace Al Montoya and they had a difficult time doing that this season. Can the Wolverines pull of the upset of host North Dakota? I think they will need to play mistake free hockey to do so.

#4 Holy Cross- One of two regular season and tournament champions in the tournament, the Crusaders come in looking to pull off a huge upset. Goaltender Tony Quesada is capable of helping this team do that as this year he won 21 games and only lost five with two ties. Tyler McGregor is the leading scorer and the Crusaders will look upon him to lead this team if they have any hope of an upset.

So now you know the teams and it is time to pick the West.

Minnesota over Holy Cross
North Dakota over Michigan

Regional Final:

North Dakota over Minnesota

Tommorrow the final region will be brokedown as the Northeast regional will be mentioned.

East Regional Preview and Picks

The East Regional is considered to be the toughest region in the tournament. Michigan State is the #1 seed and they do not have an easy task. With their first round game with New Hampshire, the Spartans will need the same firepower they had in the CCHA tournament. New Hampshire might of been the last team in, but don't count them out. If the Wildcats can forget about the 9-2 loss to Boston University in the Hockey East Semis and focus on Michigan State, then I can gurantee that they will give the Spartans a run for their money.

In the second game Harvard will play Maine. Harvard came off winning the ECACHL tournament as Ted Donato's team has been playing very well as of late. Maine is coming off a 4-1 loss to Boston College in the semi-finals. Should be an interesting game.

Now lets breakdown the teams:

#1 Michigan State- Freshman Goaltender Jeff Lerg only allowed 7 goals in 4 games during the CCHA tournament. While their is not a tremendous goal scorer on this Spartan team, they do have nine players who scored 10 goals or more. The Spartans who started 6-8-4 have since went 16-3-3 in their last 22 games which helped them give the last number one seed in the tournament. As mentioned they have a tough matchup with New Hampshire but if they play like they did in the tournament then they could represent the CCHA in the Frozen Four. No CCHA team has made the Frozen Four the last two seasons.

#2 Harvard- Ted Donato's team has won seven out of their last eight games which led them to the ECACHL tournament title. John Daigneau has done a great job replacing Dov Grumet-Morris this year in net. While the Crimson don't have much scoring, they do have the defense and that could play a big factor against Maine in the first round. Look for their game against Maine to be a low scoring affair if they want to win this one.

#3 Maine- A dangerous #3 seed, Maine can prove that the Hockey East Semi-Final loss to Boston College was a fluke. They outshot BC 36-23 but could only get one past Cory Schneider. The last time Maine and Harvard met was in 2004 when Maine came from behind trailing 4-1 at the end of the second period and scored 4 unanswered goals to win the game. However this is a much better Harvard team they are facing and can not afford to be behind at any point of this game.

#4 New Hampshire- The most likely team to pull of the 1 vs 4 upset is UNH. The Wildcats have been inconsistant all year however and if they want to win they will have to forget about their 9-2 loss to Boston University in the Hockey East semi-finals. Kevin Regan has had an off year, and Jeff Pietrasiak has been the better goalie this year. The Wildcats should start Pietrasiak if they have any shot of pulling off the upset. The offense is their with Daniel Winnik, Brett Hemmingway, and Jacob McFlikier as the top scorers. Watch for the game against Michigan State to be high scoring which would be UNH's advantage.

Okay you know the teams now its time to pick the games.

Michigan State over New Hampshire, Harvard over Maine

Regional Final

Michigan State over Harvard

Tommorrow the West Regional will be previwed.

NCAA Midwest regional preview and picks

The Midwest regional will be held in Green Bay, WI this year and the Wisconsin Badgers have the top seed in the region and the overall top seed in the NCAA tournament. The Badgers probably have the easiest region with Cornell, Colorado College, and Bemidji State. The toughest test for the Badgers would be if they win Colorado College.

Lets breakdown the teams

#1 Wisconsin- Grabbed the #1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament with a win in the WCHA consolation game over Minnesota. After a mid-season slump, the Badgers have since played very strong with the return of goaltender Brian Elliott. Robbie Earl and Joe Pavelski both scored 20 or more goals this season. Tom Gilbert is an excellent offensive defensmen posting 29 points on 11 goals and 18 assists. Head Coach Mike Eaves has done a terrific job with this team who was picked to finish 5th in the WCHA this year. Overall Wisconsin has all the talent to make a run at the National Championship.

#2 Cornell- Lost the ECACHL final to Harvard and also lost a chance to stay in the East. Goaltender David McKee will need to improve from their 6-2 loss to Harvard as the Big Red will have a tough first round matchup against Colorado College who is the 9th best scoring offense in the country. Matt Moulson needs to have a breakout game while Sasha Pokulok and the defense will need to improve in order to stop this Colorado College offense.

#3 Colorado College- The most dangerous team to Wisconsin in this region. Cornell will be a tough test and if they can beat David McKee early then the Tigers should have no problem scoring their fair share of goals. Last year's Hobey Baker winner Marty Seritch and linemate Brett Sterling lead a very powerful Tiger offense. Also watch out for Joey Crabb and Chad Rau, they are known for coming up in the clutch.

#4 Bemidji State- The Beavers nearly pulled off the upset over Denver last year who went on to win the National Championship. If they do the same to Wisconsin then they can exploit the Badgers' weakness early and could pull off the upset or just warm Cornell or Colorado College up to pull of the upset.

Predictions:

Wisconsin over Bemidji State
Colorado College over Cornell

Regional Final

Wisconsin over Colorado College

Tommorrow the East regional will be previewed.

All American Teams

Here are the two All-American and the all Freshman Team

1st team

Scott Parse JR. F- Nebraska-Omaha (20 g, 41 a, 61 p)
Ryan Poltuny JR. F- Minnesota (31 g, 23 a 54 p)
Chris Collins SR. F- Boston College (26 g 26 a 52 p)
Matt Carle JR. D- Denver (11g, 39 a, 50 p)
Reid Cashman JR. D- Quinnipiac (4 g, 34 a 38 p)
Brian Elliott JR. G- Wisconsin (20-4-3 .931 save pct, 1.76 gaa)

2nd team

Brett Sterling SR. F- Colorado College (28 g, 23 a, 51 p)
Alex Foster SO. F- Bowling Green (11 g, 40 a, 51 p)
Paul Stastny SO. F- Denver (16 g, 33 a, 49 p)
Jamie Hunt JR. D- Mercyhurst (10 g, 33 a, 43 p)
Jack Johnson FR. D- Michigan (9 g, 21 a, 30 p)
John Curry JR. G- Boston University (19-7-4 .916 save pct, 2.29 gaa)

All Freshman Team

Phil Kessel F- Minnesota (14 g, 28 a, 42 p)
T.J. Oshie F- North Dakota (20 g, 16 a, 36 p)
Brandon Yip F- Boston University (8 g, 18 a, 26 p)
Jack Johnson D- Michigan (see stats above)
Brett Motherwell D- Boston College (2 g, 16 a, 18 p)
Ben Bishop G- Maine (17-6-2 .908 save pct, 2.14 gaa)

Now here is my top five for the Hobey Baker award

#1 Matt Carle- Denver: The best offensive forward in the nation, and don't forget he plays defense too. Look for the stats to go up during the WCHA and NCAA tournaments.

#2 Ryan Poltuny- Minnesota: Scored the most goals during the regular season with 31 and helped the Gophers bounce back from their early season slump to win the WCHA regular season title.

#3 Brian Elliott- Wisconsin: If it wasant for his injury which sidelined him for 6 weeks than he would've been the favorite for the Hobey. With Elliott back the Badgers will make a run for the National Championship.

#4 Chris Collins- Boston College: This Senior led Hockey East in goals scored and points. If it wasant for a slump in the last 10 games then he might of been up higher up in the Hobey Rankings.

#5 Scott Parse- Nebraska-Omaha: He led the nation in points and has helped improve the team into an NCAA team. The Mavericks could be a sleeper team in the tournaments (CCHA connference tournament as well).

Well there you have it the All-Americans. The stats are year to date not final. Next week I am off for spring break but I will return after selection Sunday to pick the real brackets. Until then good luck to all the teams in their respective conference tournaments.

Special Bracketology from the tournament predictions

From my picks of the conference tournaments I will do a little bracketology prediction.

First lets do the automatic births:

Atlantic Hockey- Mercyhurst
CCHA- Miami
CHA- Bemidji State
ECACHL- Cornell
Hockey East- Boston University
WCHA- Minnesota

Now for the 10 at large teams:

CCHA: 2- Michigan State, Nebraska-Omaha
ECACHL: 2- Dartmouth, Harvard
Hockey East: 2- Maine, New Hampshire
WCHA: 4- Colorado College, Denver, North Dakota, Wisconsin

Now here are the rankings and their projected records:

#1 Minnesota (29-6-5)
#2 Miami (27-7-4)
#3 Wisconsin (26-10-3)
#4 Boston University (25-9-4)
#5 Maine (27-11-2)
#6 Michigan State (23-11-8)
#7 Cornell (22-7-4)
#8 North Dakota (27-15-1)
#9 Colorado College (25-14-2)
#10 Harvard (20-12-2)
#11 Denver (22-15-3)
#12 Nebraska-Omaha (23-13-6)
#13 Dartmouth (18-13-2)
#14 New Hampshire (20-13-7)
#15 Mercyhurst (24-12-1)
#16 Bemidji State (20-13-3)

Now lets place them by region

In the west Minnesota will have the top seed, the other teams are Bemidji State, Nebraska-Omaha, and host North Dakota.

West: #1 Minnesota vs #4 Bemidji State, #2 North Dakota vs #3 Nebraska-Omaha

If i had to pick this region it would look like this:

Minnesota over Bemidji State
North Dakota over Nebraska-Omaha

Minnesota over North Dakota

The winner of the West (Minnesota in my perdiction) will face the winner of the Northeast region which has host Boston University as the top seed and also includes Cornell, Dartmouth, and Denver.

Northeast: #1 Boston University vs #4 Dartmouth, #2 Cornell vs #3 Denver

Predictions:

Boston University over Dartmouth
Denver over Cornell

Boston University over Denver

The second overall seed is Miami and they will be in a region with Harvard, Maine, and Mercyhurst.

East: #1 Miami vs #4 Mercyhurst, #2 Maine vs #3 Harvard

Predictions

Miami over Mercyhurst
Maine over Harvard

Maine over Miami

And finally the winner of the East region will face the winner of the Midwest region which will have top seeded Wisconsin with Colorado College, Michigan State, and New Hampshire.

Midwest: #1 Wisconsin vs #4 New Hampshire, #2 Michigan State vs #3 Colorado College

Prediction

Wisconsin over New Hampshire
Colorado College over Michigan State

Wisconsin over Colorado College

So therefore the Frozen Four will look like this:

Minnesota vs Boston University
Maine vs Wisconsin

Predictions

Minnesota over Boston University
Wisconsin over Maine

National Championship Game

Minnesota over Wisconsin.

Well there you have it my opinion on what the 2006 NCAA tournament would look like. This is it for bracketology this year. Tommorrow I will name my All-American team and have my Hobey Baker predictions as well.

CHA Predictions and Awards

Niagara won the regular season CHA title thus giving them a number one seed for the tournament. But just like Atlantic Hockey, the CHA only gives the bid to the conference tournament winner.

There are six teams in this conference, so therefore the third seed will play the sixth seed in the first round while the fourth and fifth seeds will also play each other.

Then its off to the semis where the number one seed will play the winner of the four, five matchup and the two seed will play the winner of the three, six matchup.

So here are the matchups for the first round. (Don't forget it is single elimination just like Atlantic Hockey)

#4 Robert Morris vs #5 Air Force
#3 Alabama-Huntsville vs #6 Wayne State

Now here are the picks for the tournament.

#5 Air Force over #4 Robert Morris
#3 Alabama-Huntsville over #6 Wayne State

Semifinals

#1 Niagara over #5 Air Force
#2 Bemidji State over #3 Alabama-Huntsville

Finals

#2 Bemidji State over #1 Niagara

Now here are the all conference teams.

1st team

Ted Cook FR. F- Niagara
Les Reaney FR. F- Niagara
Bruce Mulherin SR. F- Alabama-Huntsville
Andrew Martens SR. D- Bemidji State
Steve Kovalchik SR. D- Wayne State
Layne Sedevie JR. G- Bemidji State

2nd team

Steve Bentivoglio JR. F- Niagara
Randy Harris SR. F- Niagara
Luke Erickson JR. F- Bemidji State
Brian Gineo JR. D- Air Force
Jake Sparks SO. D- Robert Morris
Matt Climie SO. G- Bemidji State

All Freshman team

Ted Cook F- Niagara
Les Reaney F- Niagara
Chris Margott F- Robert Morris
Michael Mayra D- Air Force
Dan Sullivan D- Niagara
No Freshman Goalie because there was none who started more than 5 games for the team.

Awards

Player of the Year: Ted Cook FR. F- Niagara
Rookie of the Year: Cook
Coach of the Year: Doug Ross Alabama-Huntsville 21st season (18-12-2)

Atlantic Hockey Predictions and Awards

Atlantic Hockey came right down to the wire. But at the end it was Holy Cross who came away with the regular season crown. But that means notthing in terms of the Crusaders making the NCAA. They will need to win the tournament in order to secure themselves an automatic bid.

So here are the matchups.

#1 Holy Cross vs #8 American International
#2 Mercyhurst vs #7 Canisius
#3 Sacred Heart vs #6 Connecticut
#4 Bentley vs #5 Army

Here are the picks (everything is single elimination)

Quarterfinals

#1 Holy Cross over #8 American International
#2 Mercyhurst over #7 Canisius
#3 Sacred Heart over #6 Connecticut
#5 Army over #4 Bentley

Semifinals

#1 Holy Cross over #5 Army
#2 Mercyhurst over #3 Sacred Heart

Finals

#2 Mercyhurst over #1 Holy Cross

Now here are the all conference teams and the awards

1st team

Pierre-Luc O'Brien JR. F- Sacred Heart
Dave Borelli SR. F- Mercyhurst
Tyler McGregor SR. F- Holy Cross
Jamie Hunt JR. D- Mercyhurst
Jon Landry JR. D- Holy Cross
Jason Smith JR. G- Sacred Heart

2nd team

Ben Cottreau SO. F- Mercyhurst
Scott Champagne JR. F- Mercyhurst
Bear Trapp FR. F- Sacred Heart
Tim Matheny FR. D- Army
Brendan McCartin SR. D- Bentley
Tony Quesada SR. G- Holy Cross

All freshman team

Bear Trapp F- Sacred Heart
Chris Myhro F- Connecticut
Jeff Gumaer F- Bentley
Tim Manthey D- Army
Sean Erickson D- Connecticut
Tyler Small G- Mercyhurst

Player of the Year: Jason Smith JR. G- Sacred Heart
Rookie of the Year: Bear Trapp F- Sacred Heart
Coach of the year: Shaun Hannah 10th year Sacred Heart (21-11-2)

WCHA Tournament Predictions and awards

The WCHA regular season saw a lot of ups and downs for some teams. But at the end it was Minnesota who won the McNaughton cup which is given to the regular season champion. At one point the Gophers were trailing by eight points in January, however a 14-1-1 record in their last 16 games gave the Gophers the title as they surpased then first place Wisconsin in February and never looked back.

So now here is the matchups for the WCHA Final Five first round games.

#1 Minnesota vs #10 Alaska-Anchorage
#2 Denver vs #9 Minnesota-Duluth
#3 Wisconsin vs #8 Michigan Tech
#4 North Dakota vs #7 Minnesota State
#5 Colorado College vs #6 St. Cloud State.

Here are the first round predictions.

#1 Minnesota over #10 Alaska-Anchorage (2-0)
#2 Denver over #9 Minnesota-Duluth (2-0)
#3 Wisconsin over #8 Michigan Tech (2-0)
#4 North Dakota over #7 Minnesota State (2-0)
#5 Colorado College over #6 St. Cloud State (2-0)

Since there are 10 teams in the WCHA tournament there will be a play in game Next Thursday. The bottom two teams who won the first round will face each other. In this case it will be North Dakota and Colorado College.

So therefore my pick will be North Dakota. The Fighting Sioux will then play Minnesota in the semi-finals.

Semi-Finals

#1 Minnesota over #4 North Dakota
#3 Wisconsin over #2 Denver

Consolation

#4 North Dakota over #2 Denver

Championship

#1 Minnesota over #3 Wisconsin

Now here are the all WCHA teams.

1st team

Ryan Poltuny JR. F- Minnesota
Brett Sterling SR. F- Colorado College
Joe Pavelski SO. F- Wisconsin
Matt Carle JR. D- Denver
Tom Gilbert SR. D- Wisconsin
Brian Elliott JR. G- Wisconsin

2nd team

Paul Stastny SO. F- Denver
Marty Seritch SR. F- Colorado College
Drew Stafford SR. F- North Dakota
Brian Salcido JR. D- Colorado College
Alex Goligoski SO. D- Minnesota
Kellen Briggs SO. G- Minnesota

All Freshman Team

Phil Kessel F- Minnesota
T.J. Oshie F- North Dakota
Chad Rau F- Colorado College
Chris Butler D- Denver
Brian Lee D- North Dakota
Dan Tormey G- Minnesota State

Awards

Player of the year: Matt Carle JR. D- Denver
Rookie of the year: Phil Kessel F- Minnesota
Coach of the year: Bob Matzko- St. Cloud State 1st year (18-14-4)

Hockey East Perdictions and All conference honors and awards

This years edition of the Hockey East season came down to the final weekend once again. With Boston College having a 3 point lead heading into Friday, Boston University cut it to one against Northeastern, and Maine cut it to 2 with a tie. On Saturday BC lost to New Hampshire leaving the door open for BU and the Terriers took advantage of that giving them the regular season title. Maine defeated UMASS-Amherst giving them the #2 spot in the Hockey East Tournament.

Here are the first round matchups:

#1 Boston University vs #8 UMASS-Amherst
#2 Maine vs #7 UMASS-Lowell
#3 Boston College vs #6 Vermont
#4 New Hampshire vs #5 Providence

Now its time for picks from the quarterfinal round to the finals.

#1 Boston University over #8 UMASS-Amherst (2-0)
#2 Maine over #7 UMASS-Lowell (2-0)
#6 Vermont over #3 Boston College (2-1)
#4 New Hampshire over #5 Providence (2-1)

Semifinals:

#1 Boston University over #6 Vermont
#2 Maine over #4 New Hampshire

Finals:

#1 Boston University over #2 Maine

Hockey East is the only conference without a consoloation game so there is no need to pick that.

Here are the all Hockey East Teams

1st Team

Chris Collins SR. F- Boston College
Brian Boyle JR. F- Boston College
Greg Moore SR. F- Maine
Brian Yandle SR. D- New Hampshire
Dan Spang SR. D- Boston University
John Curry JR. G- Boston University

2nd Team

Brett Hemmingway JR. F- New Hampshire
Torrey Mitchell SO. F- Vermont
Torry Gadja SR. F- Providence
Peter Harrold SR. D- Boston College
Marvin Degon SR. D- UMASS-Lowell
Ben Bishop FR. G- Maine

All Rookie Team

Brandon Yip F- Boston University
Benn Ferriero F- Boston College
Trevor Smith F- New Hampshire
Brett Motherwell D- Boston College
Cody Wild D- Providence
Ben Bishop G- Maine

Awards

Co-Players of the year: Chris Collins SR. F and Brian Boyle JR. F Boston College
Rookie of the year: Ben Bishop G Maine
Coach of the year: Tim Army Providence (17-14-3)

College Hockey Preview down to the wire

There will be three regular season titles on the line this weekend as Atlantic Hockey, the CHA, and Hockey East will end thier season this weekend.

Currently in Atlantic Hockey Holy Cross and Sacred Heart are tied for the conference lead but Sacred Heart has the tiebreaker. Also dont forget about third place Mercyhurst who is only trailing by one point. Sacred Heart has Connecticut this weekend so the Pioneers have the best shot at getting the #1 seed in the conference tournament. Holy Cross will face Bentley in a tough series. Bentley is currently number 4 in AH. And Mercyhurst will face Canisius.

In the CHA, Alabama-Huntsville leads by two points over second place Niagara. They will face Bemidji State who is currently third in the conference and are only trailing UAH by 4 points. Niagara wont have it easy this weekend either, they will face fourth place Robert Morris who has happened to be a tough opponent lately.

And finally the Hockey East race has come down to the final weekend again. Hockey East leader Boston College will have a home and home against New Hampshire. A win will at least give BC a share of the Hockey East title, while UNH is looking for home ice for the first round. Boston University and Maine are two, three in the standings and they each trail BC by two points. Maine will play UMASS-Amherst this weekend in Orono, while BU will have a home and home series against Northeastern to end their season. This is the last two games for the Huskies season because they will not make the Hockey East Tournament, and Northeastern has notthing to lose, so look for them to play tough this weekend.

And finally the WCHA is clinched, but Denver and Colorado College will face each other in an important series for seeding. Denver is looking to wrap up a #2 seed in the WCHA while Colorado College is looking to move up to third so they wont have to be in the play-in game in the WCHA final five as the Tigers are trailing third place Wisconsin by two points. Wisconsin will face St. Cloud State to end their regular season.

Well this is the last weekend preview. Starting this weekend I will breakdown the other 4 conference tournaments as I will make perdictions and have the all conference teams.

Bracketology Wednesday Week 8

There are some major changes in the brackets so lets get straight to it,

First off the cofrences and the number of teams that are in.

WCHA: 5 (Colorado College, Denver, Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin)
CCHA: 3 (Miami, Michigan, Michigan State)
Hockey East: 3 (Boston College, Boston University, Maine)
ECACHL: 3 (Colgate, Cornell, Harvard)
Atlantic Hockey: 1 (Sacred Heart)
CHA: 1 (Alabama-Huntsville)

Now lets seed them.

#1 Minnesota (23-6-5)=
#2 Miami (23-7-4)+
#3 Maine (23-10-1)+
#4 Wisconsin (21-9-3)-
#5 Boston University (19-9-4)-
#6 Michigan State (20-10-8)-
#7 Colorado College (23-12-1)-
#8 Boston College (20-10-2)+
#9 Colgate (18-10-6)+
#10 Denver (19-13-2)+
#11 Michigan (18-13-5)-
#12 North Dakota (21-14-1)+
#13 Harvard (17-10-2)+
#14 Cornell (18-7-4)-
#15 Sacred Heart (20-10-2)+
#16 Alabama-Huntsville (18-10-2)=

Now lets place the teams

The #1 overall seed is Minnesota and they will be in the West regional with Alabama-Huntsville, Michigan State, and host North Dakota.

West: #1 Minnesota vs #4 Alabama-Huntsville, #2 Michigan State vs #3 North Dakota.

The #2 overall seed and second #1 seed is Miami and they will be placed in the East with Boston College, Colgate, and Sacred Heart.

#1 Miami vs #4 Sacred Heart, #2 Boston College vs #3 Colgate.

The third overall seed is Maine and they will be placed in the Northeast regional with host Boston University, Cornell, and Denver.

#1 Maine vs #4 Cornell, #2 Boston University vs #3 Denver.

And the final number one seed is Wisconsin and they will be in the Midwest Regional with Colorado College, Michigan, and Harvard.

#1 Wisconsin vs #4 Harvard, #2 Colorado College vs #3 Michigan.

The Frozen Four bracket will look like this:

West vs Midwest
Northeast vs East

On the bubble are New Hampshire, St. Cloud State, Dartmouth and Northern Michigan.

Thats all for this week. The last college hockey preview will happen tommorrow so make sure you check that out and for next week the rest of the conference tournament perdictions and all conference teams.