Coaching Change at Ohio State

Miami fans will have to find another tan man to heckle

Columbus, Ohio (March 16) - After 15 years behind the Buckeye bench, OSU athletic director Gene Smith announced the contract of head hockey coach John Markell, would not be renewed. Markell, a Bowling Green alum, took over for Jerry Welsh in the middle of the 1994-95 season and compiled a respectable 280-267-56 record including the school's only CCHA tournament title in 2004, six NCAA tournament appearances and the school's only trip to the Frozen Four back in 1998. However, after reaching the NCAA tournament last season, the Buckeyes were largely expected to contend for a top four finish in the CCHA. Instead, they finished 9th in the regular season and a disappointing 15-18-6 overall. Instead of a first round bye, the Buckeyes hosted a first round playoff series at the OSU Ice Rink sweeping Notre Dame. The following week, they traveled to regular season champion Miami where they extended the RedHawks to three games but were ultimately eliminated.

Blue Jackets beat writer Michael Arace recently penned a column where he states that Markell was not the problem, but rather, Value City Arena and the OSU administration bear much of the blame for the lack of consistency the program has put forth. While I agree Value City Arena is an absolutely awful venue for nearly anything, it's a pro-style facility that most certainly has all the amenities a professional hockey team might have. And when full, VCA could become a significant recruiting advantage for Ohio State. The problem is that college hockey simply does not play to 17,500 seats every night, anywhere. The top drawing programs like Wisconsin, North Dakota and Minnesota play in buildings that hold 15,237, 11,640 and 10,000 respectively with Wisconsin rarely playing to a full house. Arace is correct in saying that most programs have buildings that range in the 2,500 to 6,000 seat number and a rink of that size on campus at Ohio State could have far-reaching implications for the program. But, I find it highly unlikely that the administration would want to pony up $40-$50 million to build it.

Ultimately, Arace is wrong. It's not the building or the lack of real commitment to hockey at Ohio State that doomed Markell. He was not renewed because his program had stagnated. Even considering he took a program that averaged just 9 wins per season in the decade prior to his arrival on campus to one that won nearly 20 a year during his 15 seasons, he simply could never generate consistent momentum while being tormented by Rico Blasi and Miami down the road.

And while Ohio State has never been #1 in the state of Ohio for men's hockey behind Bowling Green and now Miami, there was the feeling that the momentum Markell had generated a few years ago was squandered. That even with decent recruiting classes, Ohio State was not winning enough to move the needle forward. That long time donors and season ticket holders finally gave up hope and stopped giving their money. In the end, Markell is out because he didn't win consistently enough and was too nice a guy to point out the fact that Ohio State doesn't really care about hockey, regardless of what they might say.

Ultimately, I do feel for Coach Markell and hope he finds another opportunity down the road.

Next Coach?
Adam Wodon of College Hockey News had this to say on possible Markell replacements.

Friday Night Lights - March 12

Red and White Wall - Miami defeats Ohio State (photo: cnati.com)

Oxford, Ohio (March 12) - Led by two goals apiece from Carter Camper and Andy Miele, the top seeded Miami RedHawks overcame a one-goal first period deficit to defeat Ohio State 6-2 in a CCHA second round tournament game at Steve Cady Arena.

Miele would get the RedHawks on the board first before Ohio State's Hunter Bishop would score his fourth and fifth goals in the last two games as the Buckeyes took a 2-1 lead into the dressing room at the end of 20 minutes.

But Camper would tie the game for Miami just 17 seconds into the second period on a one-timer from Miele and get the game-winner on the powerplay a few minutes later firing up the better-than-expected crowd of 3,141 at the Goggin Ice Center (Miami students are still on spring break). The RedHawks would score twice more in the second period to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 5-2 lead heading into the final stanza.

On the night, Miele had 2 goals and 2 assists for his third career four point game while linemate Jarod Palmer had a goal and an assist. Junior captain Tommy Wingels chipped in with two assists and added a massive, clean open ice hit on OSU assistant captain Peter Boyd which resulted in a cheap retaliation spearing penalty to Wingels' nether-region. After the intent to injure penalty was assessed, Boyd was escorted to the locker room and the Buckeyes did not muster much of a comeback even when awarded a late third period two-man advantage.

After a slow start, Miami goaltender Cody Reichard made 26 saves and Buckeye netminder Dustin Carlson was pulled for the second consecutive start at Steve Cady Arena.

Game two of the best-of-three second round series is tonight at 7:05pm from Oxford. You can find an additional game recap at MURedHawks.com

Around the CCHA

Michigan 5, MSU 1 - Don't look now, but maybe, just maybe, Michigan is about to turn it on. They overwhelmed their in-state rivals with three first period goals and rolled in front of super-sub Shawn Hunwick who is still manning the crease while Bryan Hogan recovers from a groin injury. I believe the Wolverines will have to win the CCHA Championship in order to make the NCAA Tournament for a 20th consecutive year.

Ferris State 3, UNO 1 - Solid performance from the Bulldogs in shutting down one of the hotter offenses in college hockey.

Northern Michigan 4, Alaska 3 - After jetting to a 4-0 lead, the Wildcats had to hang on to defeat the Nanooks in Marquette, Mich.

Around the Country

Niagara 5, Bemidji State 4 - With the Beavers loss, it means that the four-team CHA will likely get two teams into the NCAA tournament spoiling the hopes of an at-large bubble team from a power conference. Currently, Bemidji is 6th in the Pairwise Rankings. I find it highly unlikely they would slide far enough to miss out on an at-large bid. The Purple Eagles will go for the final CHA Tournament title tonight on home ice vs. Alabama-Huntsville.

Quinnipiac 3, Union 2 - Why include this score, you ask? Because it took 5 OT periods for the Bobcats to pull out the victory in the longest game in NCAA history! The two teams meet again tonight in just a few hours.

CCHA Second Round - Miami v. OSU

Andy Miele and the RedHawks prepare to take on Dustin Carlson,
Chris Reed and the Buckeyes

Oxford, Ohio (March 11) - For the first time since 2004, Miami and Ohio State will face each other in the CCHA playoffs. The RedHawks and Buckeyes will battle in a best-of-three second-round series starting tonight at 7:35pm with game two coming Saturday at 7:05pm, and if necessary, game three at 7:05pm on Sunday evening. Each game will be played at Miami's Steve Cady Arena. With Miami's students returning from spring break, tickets are still available for Friday night, however Saturday is a virtual sell out with possibly a few SRO tickets remaining.

Friday and Saturday will mark the fifth and sixth times the two teams have faced each other this season. The RedHawks lead the season series 3-0-1 with the most recent meeting having occurred at Value City Arena on February 27 when the teams skated to a 0-0 tie. Miami has outscored Ohio State 16-4 this season including two shutouts of the Buckeyes.

While the eighth seeded Buckeyes appear to be heavy underdogs this weekend, history has shown that top-seeded Miami is vulnerable after breaks and bye weeks, including when they have hosted second round series in the past.

For instance in 2006-07, Miami finished third in the CCHA earning a first round playoff bye. The RedHawks completed the year at 24-14-4 and upset #1 seed New Hampshire in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Yet, the RedHawks were swept by Lake Superior in the second round of the CCHA playoffs in Oxford.

Last season, Miami finished 23-14-5, tied for second in the league, and came within a minute of the school's first national title. Yet, after securing a first round CCHA playoff bye, the RedHawks were defeated in three games by Northern Michigan and once again sat on the sidelines instead of playing for the CCHA championship and the Mason Cup.

And, earlier this year, Miami was swept by lowly Robert Morris after a lengthy holiday break.

What's this all mean? It means the RedHawks can be beaten by Ohio State if history is any predictor of future performance. However, that same pattern of struggling in the second round tends to occur every other year. This year? The pattern indicates Miami should win the series and advance to the CCHA semifinals at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Mich. But, certainly Miami's history is worth noting.

But, unlike past seasons where Miami has played a home series to a partially full building (due to spring break) and less than thrilling opponents like Northern Michigan and Lake Superior State, this season, Miami plays their chief in-state rival and the students will be back to fill up the building on Saturday night. Perhaps Miami has fallen victim to a two-week break followed by an opponent that hasn't always been an emotional motivator. Perhaps Miami simply plays down to competition at times. But, that won't be the case with an key rival coming to Oxford. Miami should be sky high for this series and will gain an additional edge if they can get through Friday's game with a less than full student section.

I think Miami sweeps the series and advances to the Joe.

Notes:

• Miami has dominated the Buckeyes recently going 11-1-2 in the past 14 games.
• Miami leads the all-time series with Ohio State 61-56-12 including 38-21-4 in Oxford.
  
• Miami is 5-2 against Ohio State in CCHA tournament play with the last meeting coming in the CCHA semifinals in Detroit in 2004. That year the Buckeyes won three overtime games in three days to capture their only Mason Cup when the CCHA still utilized the "Super Six" format.
• Miami has won 20 or more games for five consecutive seasons and was 21-2-5 in CCHA play this season alone.
  

Dalpe, Multiple RedHawks Honored
Detroit, Mich. (March 11) - Earlier this week, the CCHA announced its all-league teams and finalists for individual awards. Coming off a dominating regular season, several RedHawks were honored headlined by senior Jarod Palmer and sophomore Cody Reichard joining Ohio State forward Zac Dalpe by being named to the CCHA's first team. Palmer led the RedHawks in goals (16) and points (40) this season while Reichard led the CCHA in nearly every goaltending category as well as being the national leader in goals-against average (1.48), save percentage (93.8) and winning percentage (17-2-3 overall). In addition, junior captain Tommy Wingels and classmate Andy Miele were both named to the league's second team while Carter Camper earned honorable mention. Lastly, freshman defenseman Joe Hartman was named to the CCHA all-rookie team after a year in which he played in 35 of 36 games registering 14 points on six goals including two short-handed. Importantly, Hartman was fourth on the squad in plus-minus with a +20 rating and helped the RedHawks lead the nation in scoring defense at 1.72 goals per game.

Zac Dalpe led Ohio State in goals (20) and points (40) in being named to the CCHA first team and a finalist for Player of the Year. After a stellar freshman year, Dalpe broke out this season and led the Buckeyes from start to finish. He has been the only consistent scoring threat OSU has had this season.

In addition to the team awards, the individual finalists were named.

Cody Reichard was named a finalist for CCHA Player of the Year along with Dalpe and Northern Michigan defenseman Eric Gustafsson.

Tommy Wingels was nominated for Best Defensive Forward and Miami sophomore defenseman Will Weber (CBJ draft pick) was nominated as Best Defensive Defenseman (the league splits this into two honors to give more attention to defenseman who are sometimes overlooked in awards presentations).

Lastly, Miami head coach Enrico Blasi was named a finalist for CCHA Coach of the Year, an honor he has won three times previously.

The CCHA Awards kick off CCHA Championship Weekend on Thursday, March 18. The banquet, an Academy Awards-style event with music videos and video highlights, is held at historic Fox Theatre in downtown Detroit, across from Comerica Park. The banquet begins with a social hour presented by the RBC Financial Group at 6:30 p.m. The Awards Program starts at 7:30 p.m. Banquet tickets are $15 and can be purchased by calling the CCHA at (248) 888-0600 or at the door the day of the event. MURedHawks.com

Other Second Round Matchups

Michigan at Michigan State - In a rare second round meeting, the Wolverines will invade their arch-rivals in East Lansing. The good news for the CCHA is that at least one of these teams will advance to the Joe next weekend helping boost attendance. Michigan must likely win the CCHA tournament in order to make the NCAA tournament for the 20th consecutive year. I think the Wolverines advance because they are more talented, but MSU has had Michigan's number recently.

Alaska at Northern Michigan - The Nanooks hit the road again to play an interesting series in Marquette, Mich. NMU has played their best hockey historically during the second half of the season and they are doing it again this year. Walt Kyle almost always has the Wildcats in Detroit and I think that happens again.

Nebraska-Omaha at Ferris State - Dean Blais has the Mavericks flying but they'll be in for a stern test traveling to Big Rapids, Mich. to face the Bulldogs. I think this series goes to three games with Omaha moving on to Detroit.

Friday Night Lights - March 5

Buckeyes win Game 1 over Notre Dame

Columbus, Ohio (March 6) - Led by senior forward Mathieu Picard's two goals, eighth seeded Ohio State defeated nine seed Notre Dame 3-1 in front of 734 strong at the OSU Ice Arena. As is the case annually, the Buckeyes are forced to play a home playoff series at the old barn adjacent to St. John Arena rather than their usual plush home digs at the Schott due to the Ohio High School Wrestling Championships having Value City Arena to themselves. Frankly, I believe the Buckeyes should play all of their games at the old building because unlike Value City, there is actually a college hockey atmosphere there and a real home ice advantage for Ohio State. The two teams play again at 7pm this evening and the game is purportedly sold out meaning 1,500 strong will cram into the facility to see if the Buckeyes can sweep Notre Dame and move onto the second round.

With all of the upper seeded teams winning last night, it sets up the real chance that Ohio State and Miami could meet in Oxford in the second round of the playoffs for the right to advance to the CCHA Championship in Detroit in two weeks. Of course, this assumes that no lower seeded teams win the next two games to shake up the bracket.

Michigan, Alaska and UNO Post Game 1 Victories
In addition to the Buckeyes game one win, all the higher seeded teams notched victories in the first night of CCHA playoff action.

In Ann Arbor, Mich. seventh seeded Michigan behind seldom-used backup netminder Shawn Hunwick, defeated tenth seeded Lake Superior State 5-2. Hunwick was again subbing for injured junior Bryan Hogan and made 21 saves to get the win. Matt Rust, for whom the Blue Jackets traded Mathieu Roy, scored an unassisted goal just 37 seconds into the third period which turned out to be the game-winner. The Wolverines go for the sweep tonight at Yost Ice Arena at 7:35pm.

In Fairbanks, Alaska, the fifth seeded Nanooks blanked twelve seed Western Michigan 4-0 behind 16 saves from Scott Greenham. Should the Broncos be unable to find a way to win tonight, it will be the last game behind the bench for outgoing head coach Jim Culhane. The Nanooks will attempt to sweep the Broncos at 11:05pm EST tonight from Fairbanks.

Lastly, in Omaha, Neb., sixth seeded Nebraska-Omaha used four second period goals to chase Bowling Green starter Andrew Hammond from the net en route to a 6-1 whipping of the Falcons. Senior Jeremie Dupont made 25 saves for the Mavericks as Dean Blais' troops continue to play well down the stretch. UNO goes for the sweep tonight at 8:05pm EST from Qwest Center.

#2 Miami Moves back to #1 in Pairwise Rankings
Denver, Colo. - With #15 Colorado College's 2-1 victory over #1 Denver, Miami flipped a comparison with the Pioneers moving the RedHawks back into the top position in the Pairwise rankings that largely determine the NCAA tournament field. This means Miami would be the #1 overall seed in the tournament if the season ended today. Colorado College and Denver will play again tonight in Colorado Springs. Should the Tigers sweep the Pioneers, it will likely propel Miami back to the top of the national polls as well. Sometimes it pays to have a week off.

Friday Roundup/Weekend Preview - Feb 26 & 27

Last year's Miami seniors went out with a bang

NOTE: OK, so epic fail on my part for not getting this finished yesterday, but here it is today with updated playoff implications.

Oxford, Ohio (Feb. 26) - With 106 wins, a CCHA regular season title, a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament and an appearance in the NCAA title game in the bag, LAST season's Miami seniors were the most decorated of any class in school history. However, THIS season's senior class, including Jarod Palmer, Gary Steffes, Brandon Smith and Dane Hetland have an opportunity to surpass those accomplishments. Consider they already have a second CCHA regular season title to their credit, they possess the CCHA's top tournament seeding, another #1 NCAA tournament seed is a possibility as is the opportunity to capture the school's first-ever Mason Cup, awarded to the winner of the CCHA tournament, and perhaps, a second Frozen Four appearance. Additionally, this senior class' win total of 104 makes them the second winningest in school history. And, with (likely) at least five games remaining, they have an opportunity to leave Oxford as the school's most successful class ever. Incidentally, NEXT year's senior class which has driven much of the success of the past two years is already at 80 wins meaning they too will have an opportunity to rewrite the Miami hockey record books and could complete their time at Miami with an unprecedented four players in the career 100-point club.

With the first-round of the CCHA tournament starting next weekend, this is the last weekend of regular season play and, aside from the top spot, the league is tightly packed from second through tenth place. In fact, first-round byes and first-round home ice slots are still up for grabs.

Here's a quick rundown of the weekend's action.

Miami v. Ohio State
Miami's 4-2 loss last Saturday vs. UNO saw the RedHawks 23-game league unbeaten streak end as well as its school record 11 game overall unbeaten streak. With the loss and Denver's sweep of WCHA bottom-feeder Michigan Tech, the pollsters saw fit to move the Pioneers ahead of Miami in all three media polls. While Miami will continue to play for the #1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament, the Buckeyes are clinging to the final first round home ice playoff spot which they possess by three points over ninth place Lake Superior. Should the Lakers sweep the Wildcats, they could easily pass Ohio State should they struggle this weekend against the RedHawks.

Update: Miami scored SIX second period goals to overwhelm the Buckeyes 6-2 on senior night. Six different RedHawks scored goals including a goal and an assist for senior Jarod Palmer in his final regular season game at Steve Cady Arena. Sophomore Cody Reichard made 33 saves to improve to 17-2-3 on the season. The teams will conclude the regular season tonight at 8pm from Value City Arena where Ohio State will need at least a point to assure themselves of having home ice next weekend when the CCHA playoffs begin. The Buckeyes got a break when Northern Michigan defeated Lake Superior in OT meaning the Lakers are still three points behind Ohio State for the final home ice slot. But, should the Buckeyes lose and the Lakers win tonight, Lake Superior will take the tiebreaker and host Ohio State next weekend.

Ferris State v. Western Michigan
The Bulldogs find themselves in a tie for second place with Michigan State in the league standings and face a difficult challenge in last place Western Michigan. Last week, the Broncos announced that head coach Jim Culhane would not return to the WMU bench next season meaning you can undoubtedly expect them to play hard for Culhane during final weekend as head coach. With a second place finish, Ferris State would have its highest league finish since winning the CCHA regular season title in 2002-03.

Update: Ferris State secured a first round playoff bye with a shootout victory over the Broncos. It was the fourth shootout win for Ferris State this season. The Bulldogs are currently 14th in the Pairwise rankings that largely determine the NCAA tournament field,

Michigan State v. Bowling Green
Like Ferris State, the Spartans have an opportunity to lock up the #2 seed in the CCHA tournament which would enable them to avoid a matchup with Miami until the CCHA Championship game in Detroit. While MSU won't see a big boost in the Pairwise this weekend, their NCAA hopes are hanging by a thread so two wins this weekend are an absolute must.

Update: Michigan State secured a first round bye and moved into sole possession of second place with a 5-2 win over Bowling Green. MSU is currently tied for 11th in the Pairwise rankings.

Northern Michigan v. Lake Superior State
The aforementioned Lakers are hoping they can sneak into eighth place in the league and steal the final first round home ice playoff spot from Ohio State. However, NMU has an opportunity still to claim a first round bye so this series between the two "U-P" rivals takes on additional importance this weekend.

Update: NMU can clinch the fourth and final first round playoff bye with two points tonight against Lake Superior. The Wildcats defeated the Lakers 2-1 in OT last night.

Michigan v. Notre Dame
These two teams played Thursday with Michigan earning a 4-0 win at Yost Ice Arena. Junior goaltender Bryan Hogan left the game with an apparent groin injury early in the first period, but seldom-used junior Shawn Hunwick picked up the slack and carried the Wolverines to the shutout.

Update: After Friday's games, Michigan sits in seventh place in the CCHA just two points behind Northern Michigan for the final first round bye. If Michigan defeats Notre Dame in South Bend tonight and NMU takes one point or less against Lake Superior, Michigan will earn the fourth position.

UNO and Alaska
Both teams will play non-conference series against Bemidji State and Alaska-Anchorage, respectively. UNO can enhance their NCAA tournament resume with a sweep of the Beavers while Alaska can continue to affirm their place in the top 16 of the Pairwise.

Update: Bemidji State defeated UNO 3-1 and Alaska defeated archrival Alaska-Anchorage 7-4 last night. Currently, UNO sits 20th in the Pairwise and out of the NCAA tournament field of 16. Alaska is currently tied for 11th.

Friday Round-up

Justin Vaive and the RedHawks have been punishing teams of late

Oxford, Ohio (Feb. 19) - Junior forward Justin Vaive scored his fourth goal of the season and senior Jarod Palmer, the CCHA's reigning offensive player of the week, continued his hot streak by registering three points as #1 Miami defeated Nebraska-Omaha 6-2 at Steve Cady Arena.

After a shaky first period that saw Miami trade chances with the Mavericks, the RedHawk defense took over the game. Led by sophomores Will Weber and Cameron Schilling, Miami limited UNO to just 10 shots during the final two periods of the game after surrendering an uncharacteristic 11 in the first period. In fact, Miami allowed two first period goals which broke a streak of 13 unanswered first period goals by the RedHawks who had not allowed a goal in the first period of a game since a 1-1 tie at Alaska on January 22.

Dean Blais professes "race horse hockey." And, he had his Mavericks running in the first period. But, Miami made the necessary adjustments and got back to locking down the neutral zone, and frankly, kept UNO out of the Miami zone for much of the second and third periods. The ice definitely seemed tilted after that first period that saw Cody Reichard allow an uncharacteristic goal when UNO sophomore forward Alex Hudson fired a wrister past Reichard on a 1-on-1 rush and Hudson also had the second Maverick goal on a 5x3 power play. After the game, Blais seemed to sum up the night's effort succinctly.

“The better team won,” said UNO coach Dean Blais. “We just got outplayed, and we got what we deserved.” Omaha.com

More to the point, Blais felt his squad ran out of juice as Miami squeezed the Mavs during the last two periods.

“I didn’t think we battled as hard as we have been — it was almost like we ran out of emotion,” Blais said. Omaha.com

For the game, Miami outshot the Mavericks 45-21 as the RedHawks once again got balanced scoring as six Hawks scored goals. Jarod Palmer led the effort with a line of 1-2-3 for the night and now has an eight game scoring streak and leads the team with 15-23-38. The 38 points are a career best for the senior from Fridley, Minn.

With the win, Miami improves to 23-4-6 overall and 20-1-4-2 CCHA. They extended their CCHA unbeaten streak to 23 games and continue to play inspired hockey despite having clinched the regular season title last weekend.

Head coach Enrico Blasi agreed.

"This team is focused on just one day at a time," Blasi said. "You go out there and play hard and you leave it all on the ice. It's going to be really hard if you take some weeks off and try to turn it on again. You gotta keep the pressure on and keep working hard and they're doing that." MURedHawks.com

Tonight, Miami will attempt to sweep the Mavericks and continue trending toward a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament. Faceoff is 7:05 from Steve Cady Arena and the game can be seen across the great state of Ohio on ONN.

Ohio State gets crucial road win over Western Michigan

Kalamazoo, Mich. (Feb. 19) - A day after learning he would not be returning to the Western Michigan bench next season, head coach Jim Culhane and the Broncos dropped a tough 3-1 decision to the visiting Ohio State Buckeyes.

Though head coach John Markell's future is cloudy at best, he could not allow time to feel sorry for Culhane as the Buckeyes continue to fight for position in the tightly packed CCHA standings. With the win, and a Lake Superior loss, Ohio State moved into sole possession of eighth place and the final home ice spot for the CCHA playoffs with three games to play. The Buckeyes are just a point behind Michigan for seventh place in the league standings as the Wolverines dropped another home game to surging Northern Michigan.

Yet again, super sophomore Zac Dalpe led the Buckeyes with two goals including an empty-netter with 53 seconds left to seal the win. Dalpe leads Ohio State with 18 goals and 34 points this season. He has been the only consistent scoring threat for the Buckeyes as only he and Sergio Somma (10 goals) are in double-digits for Ohio State.

Junior Dustin Carlson made 33 saves to register his third win of the season as the Buckeyes improved to 12-15-4 overall and 10-11-4-2 CCHA.

Ohio State and Western Michigan complete the weekend and season series tonight at 7:35pm from Lawson Ice Arena in Kalamazoo.

Weekend Preview - Feb 5 & 6

Miami takes on Lakers while Buckeyes order up UNO

Oxford, Ohio (Feb. 5) - This weekend, #1 Miami (18-4-6, 15-1-4-2 CCHA) hosts the three-time NCAA champions, the Lake Superior State Lakers (14-9-5, 9-8-3-2 CCHA) at Steve Cady Arena. The Lakers of the iconic logo and sweet uniforms have been somewhat of a surprise this year as they enter tonight's game in fifth place in the CCHA, just two points behind fourth place Michigan with one game in hand. The Wolverines leap-frogged the Lakers last night on the strength of a 2-1 road victory over Bowling Green.

Founded in 1946 in Sault Sainte Marie, Mich., Lake Superior State is a small school of just 3,000 students. However, they have found success on the largest stage having won three national titles in 1988, 1992 and 1994 narrowly missing the three-peat when they lost to Paul Kariya and Maine. Only nine other schools have won as many as three national titles, eight of which consist of the largest names in college hockey, and in some cases, all of collegiate sports.

Last season, Miami swept the Lakers in the Soo 2-1 and 4-0 en route to the national title game. And, Miami has won four straight and seven of the last nine but those two Laker wins were huge because they knocked the RedHawks out of the 2007 CCHA tournament sweeping two games in Oxford. Overall, the Lakers own a 54-32-10 advantage in the all-time series which was absolutely dominated by Lake State in the 80s and early 90s when Miami's program was still gathering steam.

Offensively, the Lakers are led by junior forwards Rick Schofield (13-10-23) and Will Acton (7-13-20) who along with senior Zac MacVoy are the only Lakers with at least 20 points. But, like Miami the scoring is spread out with ten Lakers having compiled at least ten points this year.

In net, junior Brian Mahoney-Wilson has logged the vast majority of minutes and features a record of 12-8-5, a 2.63 GAA and 91.5 save percentage. Unlike last season when he and senior Pat Inglis split time, Mahoney-Wilson has been head coach Jim Roque's guy and something he felt was necessary to give the team the best chance to win.

"I think, if anything, it has been more of my fault in not settling on one guy,” Roque said. “It’s always tough when you keep changing stuff. This summer, I said no matter what, I was going to make a decision and stick with it.” INCH

This will be an interesting series. The Lakers are coming off a bye week, one in which they endured more of Jeff Jackson's ranting, and are desperately fighting for a top four league finish and an important first round bye in the CCHA playoffs. On the other hand, Miami is in the midst of an 18-game CCHA unbeaten streak and leads the standings by ten points over second place Michigan State. Will the RedHawks continue to match the intensity of their opponents? Can the Lakers keep up their solid, but surprising play against the nation's number one team? And, Miami has an outside chance of wrapping up the regular season title this weekend should Ferris State be swept by Northern Michigan and if MSU splits its series at Alaska.

Notes:

• Lake State will be without leading scorer Rick Schofield for tonight's game due to incurring a major penalty and game disqualification 11 seconds into the Jan. 23 game against Notre Dame.
• Miami sophomore defenseman Cameron Schilling missed last Saturday's game against Western Michigan. It is unclear if Schilling was injured or scratched and what impact that may have on this weekend's series.
• Faceoff tonight is at 7:35pm; tomorrow at 7:05pm. Both games can be seen around the great state of Ohio on ONN.

Omaha, Neb. (Feb. 5) - The Ohio State Buckeyes (11-13-2, 9-9-2-1 CCHA) will attempt to win a road series at Nebraska-Omaha (13-12-5, 9-11-2-1 CCHA) where they are just 3-8-2 all-time. In doing so, they must battle not only 2010 U.S. World Junior gold medal coach Dean Blais, but what is expected to be a sold-out, all-time record crowd at Omaha's Qwest Center of 15,907.

Ohio State and UNO are tied for eighth place in the CCHA, which just happens to be the final home-ice spot in the first round of the CCHA playoffs as the fifth place through twelfth place teams will do battle in round one. Of course, both squads must be thinking higher in the tightly packed CCHA where just six points (2 wins) separates fourth, and a first-round playoff bye, from tenth place.

To illustrate just how big this series is, the Mavericks have launched a microsite where they are encouraging the Omaha faithful to rally around them and sell-out the Qwest Center tonight for the first time in school history. Check it out - www.selloutohiostate.com - I have to give them props for trying. As Ohio State knows all too well, a big building is difficult to sell out when there are so many other attractions competing for dollars in a mid-sized city on a Friday night.

The Mavericks are led by former CBJ assistant and former North Dakota head coach Dean Blais, who piloted the Fighting Sioux to two national championships. And, Blais just won gold at the U20 World Championships in Saskatoon by taking Team USA to its first gold medal since 2004. Before the season, Blais was tapped by new AD Trev Alberts, yes that Trev Alberts, to turn around the struggling hockey program. Furthermore, Alberts used the WCHA as a negotiating ploy to lure Blais as he then announced the Mavericks would leave the CCHA after this season and move to the WCHA who will also welcome Bemidji State to the league beginning this fall.

On the ice, Omaha is led by forwards Jeric Agosta (13-7-20) and Rich Purslow (11-9-20) and by senior defensman Eddie Del Grosso (4-15-19) who is having a nice final season with the Mavericks.

In net, the Mavs have split time with sophomore John Faulkner (9-8-4, 2.53 GAA, .904) getting the majority of the starts over senior Jeremie Dupont (4-4-1, 2.98 GAA, .886) who has seemingly been at Omaha for the better part of the last decade.

The Mavericks started the year especially strong at 5-1-3 but then lost six of their next eight en route to a wildly inconsistent season. Last weekend, the Mavs split at Notre Dame, but need to find their scoring touch as they have averaged just 2.73 goals per game this year and are allowing roughly the same. Dean Blais' hallmark is "race horse hockey," but that assumes you have the horses to unleash. Perhaps when Blais has time to assemble his own recruiting classes, he'll be able to play his kind of game.

Notes:

• The Buckeyes swept the Mavericks last season in Columbus winning a pair of one-goal games 4-3 and 3-2.
• This weekend's series is the first between the teams since November 28-29, 2008.
• Both games can be heard online at wosu.org/hockey. Face off time is 8:35pm and 8:05pm, Friday and Saturday, respectively.
• Dean Blais replaced long time UNO head coach Mike Kemp who was retained at Omaha as the associate athletic director with primary oversight of hockey, golf, cross country/track and field and soccer.

Saturday Recap - January 30

#1 RedHawks sweep Western Michigan; Buckeyes drop
shootout to #10 Ferris State

Oxford, Ohio (Jan. 30) - The #1 Miami RedHawks finished off a weekend sweep of Western Michigan by defeating the Broncos 2-1 at Steve Cady Arena Saturday night. Bronco senior netminder Riley Gill nearly stole at least a point by stopping 47 Miami shots but a late powerplay goal from junior Andy Miele with just over four minutes remaining in the third period enabled Miami to emerge unscathed.

Sophomore Connor Knapp was relatively untested as the RedHawk defense corps once again bottled up the opposition. Knapp made just 15 saves in registering his fifth win of the season lowering his goals-against average to 1.86.

Miami improves to 18-4-6 overall and 15-4-4-2 CCHA opening a 10-point lead over second place Michigan State in the league standings. In addition, with Robert Morris' win over Bemidji State, Miami has regained the top spot in the Pairwise rankings to themselves but Denver is closing fast in the nice to look at, but essentially meaningless, KRACH computer rankings with their weekend sweep of North Dakota.

In attempting to predict when Miami could possibly seal the CCHA regular season title, the math is a bit "fuzzy," but here's what we know.

Miami cannot technically clinch until at least the Bowling Green series on February 12-13 unless Ferris State is swept this weekend and Michigan State loses one. Here are the games remaining and the maximum possible league points for the current top four.

Miami - 8 games remaining - 75 max points (currently at 51 points)
Ferris State - 8 games remaining - 63 max points
Michigan State - 6 games remaining - 59 max points
Alaska - 6 games remaining - 59 max points

To get to 63 points, and close out everyone else, Miami needs four wins (remember, CCHA regulation wins are worth three points). But, the number assumes that Ferris and MSU win every night. If Miami sweeps Lake Superior State this weekend, Ferris is swept by Northern Michigan and MSU splits, Miami would clinch the regular season title this weekend at Steve Cady Arena in Oxford, Ohio.

Miami is back in action this Friday and Saturday, February 5-6 vs. Lake Superior State in Oxford.

Columbus, Ohio (Jan. 30) - Coming off two consecutive victories over ranked opponents, Ohio State looked to sweep the #10 Ferris State Bulldogs at Value City Arena in a penalty filled affair on Saturday night.

Ohio State trailed 1-0 after one period and 3-2 after two, but got a powerplay goal at 3:55 of the third period from junior Kyle Reed to knot the score. The game would go to overtime and eventually a shootout that the Bulldogs would win earning two league points for their efforts. Ohio State received one point for the shootout loss and took four of a possible six points on the weekend.

Sophomore Zac Dalpe scored his 15th goal of the season. No other Buckeye has more than eight goals this season. Junior Dustin Carlson made 21 saves as the Buckeyes outshot Ferris State 33-24 a night after being outshot 49-30 in earning a 5-3 win. Ohio State's record is now 11-13-2 overall and 9-9-2-1 (T8th CCHA) while Ferris State moves to 17-8-3 and 11-6-3-3 (3rd CCHA)

Next weekend, the Buckeyes travel to Omaha to take on the Mavericks in an important CCHA series matching teams tied for the final first round home-ice playoff spot. Ohio State has two games in-hand over the Mavericks but a first-round bye is still not out of reach given just four points separates 4th from 10th in the tightly packed "middle tier" of the league.

Friday Night Lights - January 29

Both #1 Miami and Ohio State held serve at home Friday night with the RedHawks knocking off CCHA basement dweller, Western Michigan 4-1. Four different Hawks scored goals for Miami while Cody Reichard delivered another outstanding performance in net making 18 saves as Miami dominated the shots on goal category outshooting Western 43-19. Miami retains its 7 point lead in the CCHA standings as Michigan State defeated Michigan 3-2.

Miami and Western Michigan return to the ice at 5pm this evening. The game will be televised on FSN Detroit as part of it's doubleheader coverage of "Hockey Day in Michigan." Miami head coach Enrico Blasi and the RedHawk program were followed yesterday by an FSN camera crew and they will be featured on "CCHA All-Access" on FSN Detroit immediately following the game. The late game will feature Michigan State and Michigan from Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Mich.





In Columbus, Ohio State defeated it's second straight ranked opponent delivering a 5-3 knock-out to #10 Ferris State who has now lost four of five after tying Miami for first place in the CCHA. Another night, another goal for super sophomore Zac Dalpe who now has 14 on the season. Cal Heeter made 46 saves in net as the Bulldogs outshot the Buckeyes 49-30. The teams meet again this evening at Value City Arena at 7:05pm.

Heroes of Hockey

Ohio State and the CBJ to Honor "Heroes of Hockey"

Columbus, Ohio (Jan. 28, 2010) - Today the CCHA, Ohio State University and the Columbus Blue Jackets announced that as part of "Hockey Weekend Across America," the university will honor a "hero of hockey" who has gone above and beyond to promote the game in central Ohio. Hockey Weekend in America starts Friday, January 29 and runs through Sunday, January 31.

Miami announced a similar initiative on January 8 with the support of the Butler County Youth Hockey Association in southwest Ohio, and it's great to see the central Ohio area will be recognized as well.

The winners will be announced on Saturday, January 30 and recognized at CCHA.com.

Saturday Night Roundup - Jan 23

Knapp earns third shutout of the season as Miami blanks Alaska 5-0; Buckeyes split with Michigan State

January 23, 2010 - #2 Miami earned five points on their longest road trip of the year defeating the Alaska Nanooks 5-0 in Fairbanks, Alaska last night. Sophomore Connor Knapp stopped all 19 shots in registering his third shutout of the season. It was Knapp's first game action since a 2-1 loss to Robert Morris on January 10 where he made just 13 saves. His goals-against average is now a sparkling 1.95 with a 91.8 save percentage as he improved his record to 4-2-3 on the year.

This weekend saw the reunion of last year's top line of juniors Carter Camper and Tommy Wingels and sophomore Alden Hirschfeld that was so good throughout the NCAA tournament. And, they didn't disappoint managing five points between them for the weekend. It was also nice to see Hirschfeld pick up his game as he seemed much more involved and active than I can remember seeing over the past several weeks. In addition, Trent Vogelhuber seems to have picked up some of that energy as he was also much more visible, working much harder than I have seem him. It's good to have those two sophomores helping contribute to take some of the scoring pressure off senior Jarod Palmer and the juniors (e.g., Camper, Pat Cannone, Andy Miele, Wingels, etc.).

The RedHawks jumped to an early 1-0 lead at 6:42 of the opening period when freshman Reilly Smith redirected a Tommy Wingels shot past Nanook goaltender Scott Greenham. The goal was scored 6x5 during a delayed penalty as Miami was able to control the puck in the offensive zone and find a quality chance. Miami would tally just six minutes later when sophomore Matt Tomassoni found the net off a chance on the right side. Tomassoni took a pass from senior Brandon Smith and wristed a high, hard shot that appeared to hit Greenham's right shoulder and bounce up and over the sophomore. The RedHawks would complete their highest scoring first period of the season when Palmer scored off a feed from Andy Miele that chased Greenham from the net at 14:50 of the first period.

Steve Thompson would enter the game and keep the Nanooks in it, but Miami would finish off the evening on third-period goals from Wingels and Brandon Smith to secure a five-point weekend and an enjoyable flight back to Ohio for the Red and White.

Head coach Enrico Blasi succinctly summarized his thoughts on the 5-0 victory.

"It was a good effort by all of our guys tonight," Head Coach Enrico Blasi said. "Connor played well (in) net and we came in with a determined effort. It was nice to get the win." muredhawks.com

Notes

• Knapp's shutout was the third of the season and his fifth in just 33 career games. He has already surpassed last year's two shutouts which was his first season at Miami.
  
• Wingels' goal was his team-leading 13th of the season. He is just two goals off his career high of 15 that came during his freshman campaign in Oxford.
• Miami's fourth line of Brandon Smith, Justin Vaive and Matt Tomassoni includes a fifth-year senior (Smith), the 6'6" son of an NHL legend (Vaive) and a defenseman (Tomassoni). The line combined for 2-2-4 on the evening.
• Miami (16-4-6, 13-1-4-2 1st CCHA) has opened a seven point lead over second place Michigan State with two games in-hand. The RedHawks ran their league unbeaten streak to 16 games.
• Miami is once again atop the Pairwise and KRACH rankings and are positioning themselves for a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament should their good play continue.
• One of the key components of the Pairwise Rankings that effectively determine the 16-team NCAA Tournament, is record against Teams Under Consideration (TUC's). The top 25 teams in the Pairwise are ranked and defined as "under consideration." Miami has played 26 games this season with 18 of them coming against TUC's. They are 12-2-4 in those games having played the 7th most difficult schedule in the nation and have achieved the 2nd best winning percentage in the country. However, only Miami's series with Lake Superior State is against another TUC for the remainder of the regular season meaning it will help Miami's Pairwise if the top teams they have already played, and beaten, such as Ferris State, Michigan, Notre Dame, New Hampshire and St. Cloud State continue to win.
  
• Miami returns home for the next two weekends starting with a two-game series against the CCHA's last place team, Western Michigan January 29-30 followed by what is shaping up to be a big series against fourth place Lake Superior State. The Lakers are having a surprisingly nice season and are in line for a first round bye in the CCHA playoffs.
• After two weeks on the road, Miami will not leave the state of Ohio until at least the CCHA championship weekend in Detroit in late March.
  

OSU 4, #10 MSU 2
A night after the Buckeyes outshot the 10th-ranked Spartans 33-28 but lost 5-2, Ohio State worked the Spartans to the tune of a 47-19 shots on goal disparity earning a split in the weekend series from Munn Ice Arena in East Lansing, Mich. Junior Patrick Schafer scored from the side of the net to break a 2-2 tie at 18:53 of the third period to lift the Buckeyes to their 10th win on the season.

Junior Dustin Carlson was back in net for Ohio State, but he was rarely tested making just 17 saves.

With the win, Ohio State improves to 10-13-1 overall and 8-9-1-1 in the CCHA. The Buckeyes await a visit to Value City Arena this weekend from third place Ferris State who swept them during a series in Big Rapids earlier this year. And, with 26 points, Ohio State is just one point behind Nebraska-Omaha for the final home ice position for the first round of the CCHA playoffs but has two games in-hand over the Mavericks.

Ohio State has 10 league games remaining, which is plenty of time to make up ground and finish in the top 8 of the standings to earn home ice advantage for the first round of the conference playoffs. However, a difficult schedule awaits with series against Ferris State, at Nebraska-Omaha, fifth place Alaska and a home-and-home with their fiercest rival, Miami, to close the regular season.

Notes

• Ohio State's victory coupled with Miami's win in Fairbanks enabled the RedHawks to open a seven-point spread over the second place Spartans in the CCHA. It's roughly a 2 1/2 game lead since CCHA league wins are worth 3 points each.
  

Other Games of Interest
#8 Ferris State 3, Michigan 2 - Ferris earns the split in the second half of the home-and-home from Ewigleben Ice Arena in Big Rapids, Mich.

#3 Wisconsin 4, #1 Denver 3 - The Badgers take 3 of 4 points from the Pioneers in Madison opening the door for #2 Miami to return to the top of the polls this week.

#14 Bemidji State 5, #4 Minnesota-Duluth 4 - The Beavers of the CHA sweep the first place team in the WCHA. The sweep effectively silences the noise-makers from that western conference whom as we know, can do no wrong...for a few minutes at least.

Friday Night Lights - January 22

RedHawks and Nanooks battle to 1-1 tie in frigid Fairbanks; Buckeyes flattened by Michigan State

In what was a bit of a sloppy game, #2 Miami overcame a one-goal first period deficit to secure a 1-1 tie with the Alaska Nanooks on Friday night in Fairbanks, Alaska. The RedHawks would earn an extra point in the CCHA standings by winning the shootout 1-0 as sophomore Cody Reichard stopped all three Alaska shooters and senior Jared Palmer's slick backhand beat Nanook netminder Scott Greenham on Miami's first attempt.

After roughly 20 hours of travel for the RedHawks, Alaska would find the net first with just 28 seconds remaining in the first period as defenseman Aaron Gens scored a powerplay goal. Gens received a blind, backhanded pass from Dion Knelsen through the slot to convert a diving redirection that just slipped under Reichard's glove as he moved from his right to his left in an attempt to make the save. Miami managed just four shots on goal in the first period as they struggled to regain their legs.

Miami would tie the score just 2:52 into the second period also via the powerplay as junior Pat Cannone scored his seventh goal of the season assisted by classmates Carter Camper and Tommy Wingels.

From a puck possession and territorial standpoint, Miami dominated the second and third periods but was unable to register many quality scoring chances, and when they did, Greenham was there for Alaska. On the night, Miami sent just 24 shots on net while holding the Nanooks to only 21. It was a typical defensive effort for two teams ranked in the top 20 nationally in team defense.

Tonight, Miami returns to the Carlson Center to face the Nanooks for the final time in the regular season and will benefit from Andy Miele's return to the lineup after a one-game absence. Faceoff is 11pm EST from Fairbanks.

Notes

• With the shootout win, Miami extended its CCHA unbeaten streak to 15 games
• Freshmen Steve Mason and Devin Mantha benefited by Miele's absence as both cracked the lineup and played well
• Freshman Curtis McKenzie was stopped on a breakaway opportunity in the third period by Greenham who made several big saves to keep his team in it
• Miami is now 15-4-6 overall, 12-1-4-2 CCHA. They are four points ahead of second place Michigan State with two games at hand on the Spartans

#10 MSU 5, OSU 2
In East Lansing, Mich., #10 Michigan State defeated Ohio State 5-2 in a penalty-filled affair. After falling behind 1-0, the Spartans rallied to take a 2-1 lead after one period. Taylor Stefishen earned his first career two-goal game for the Buckeyes and Cal Heeter made 23 saves while allowing all five Spartan goals.

The two teams complete the weekend series tonight in East Lansing. The game can be seen on the Big Ten Network starting at 5pm.

Notes

• With the regulation victory, Michigan State picks up a point on first place Miami since the RedHawks won in a shootout. They are four points behind Miami but have played two more games.
• Ohio State committed nine penalties and the Spartans went 2-8 on the powerplay
• Sophomore Cal Heeter's save percentage was just 82.1 on the night

Other Games of Interest

• #1 Denver at #3 Wisconsin - In the marquee matchup of the weekend, #1 Denver and #3 Wisconsin skated to a 3-3 tie in Madison. The Pioneers led 2-0 early in the third only to surrender three consecutive Badger goals to trail 3-2 late. Anthony Maini would tally with just 1:56 remaining to send the game to overtime where it ended 3-3.

• #8 Ferris State at Michigan - After dropping a pair of games last weekend vs. #2 Miami, Ferris State headed to Ann Arbor for the first of a home-and-home. However, the suddenly surging Wolverines sent the Bulldogs back to Big Rapids with their second shutout loss in the past three games as Michigan won 2-0. The teams will complete the series tonight in Big Rapids, Mich. Ferris State is suddenly eight points behind Miami after entering last weekend's series tied with the RedHawks for first place in the CCHA.

• #9 Cornell 1, #5 North Dakota 0 - The Big Red mustered just 15 shots but came away with the victory at Lynah Ice Arena in Ithaca, N.Y. This was a big win for Cornell who is continually dismissed by writers and fans of the WCHA for being unworthy of their top 10 ranking.

• #12 St. Cloud State 4, Minnesota 3 - The Huskies get the win to continue their ascent up the Pairwise and WCHA standings.

• #14 Bemidji State 4, #4 Minnesota-Duluth 1 - The Beavers got back on track defeating the Bulldogs in their final meeting in Bemidji's John Glas Fieldhouse before joining the WCHA as a full-time member in the new $44 million Bemidji Regional Events Center next year. The Beavers are fourth in the current Pairwise rankings which would earn them a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament if the season ended today.

Red Bull Gives You Wing(el)s

Miami captain Tommy Wingels scores four goals in 6-0 rout of Buckeyes

Columbus, Ohio (Dec. 11, 2009) - With all due respect to Red Bull, maybe their tagline should be revised. Junior captain Tommy Wingels netted #1 Miami's first four goals including three on the powerplay as the RedHawks cruised past Ohio State 6-0.

Wingels, who entered the game with six goals on the season, also added an assist for a final line of 4-1-5 enabling him to assume the team lead in goals (10) and forge a tie with junior forward Carter Camper for team points supremacy (18). It was Wingels first four-goal game of his college career and he couldn't remember a time in recent history that he'd had a similar performance.

"It hasn't happened in a while, maybe not since the squirt leagues," Wingels said. "We're all happy to come out with the win, no matter who scores. Our goal was just to finish with three more (CCHA) points for the team tonight." (Ohio State Buckeyes)

Three other RedHawks enjoyed three point evenings as Camper (0-3-3), junior forward Pat Cannone (1-2-3) and freshman forward Curtis McKenzie (0-3-3) helped set up Wingels and senior Jarod Palmer who scored the sixth and final goal of the night for Miami at 15:49 of the third period.

Lost among the offensive fireworks was the solid defensive job Miami was doing in holding the Buckeyes to just 17 shots on goal. The team effort enabled sophomore goaltender Cody Reichard to notch his second consecutive shutout and lower his nation's best goals-against average to 1.34 as he improved to 10-1-2 on the season. Miami has not allowed a goal since November 28 as they have recorded shutout victories in their last three games. In fact, the scoreless streak has now reached 202:14 minutes which is a school record.

For the Buckeyes, the loss had to be disheartening as head coach John Markell thought he was settling in on a starting goaltender in sophomore Cal Heeter that he could ride during the second half of the season. Heeter came into Friday's game with a 2.75 GAA and 91.4 save percentage. However, the native of St. Louis, Missouri was average at best surrendering all six Miami goals and perhaps had a case of the jitters. With the performance, Heeter earned himself a spot on the bench for tonight's series finale in Oxford. Junior goaltender Dustin Carlson will apparently return to the Buckeye crease to face the always creative Miami student section in Steve Cady Arena.

“(Heeter) is not too happy with himself,” Markell said. “I thought he had some freshman moments there… He made some saves in the second period just couldn’t sustain it.” (USCHO)

With the win, Miami improved to 12-2-5 on the season and 9-1-3-1 (31 points) in the CCHA. Miami will need to continue to win as both Michigan State (26 points) and red hot Ferris State (25 points, two games in-hand) continued to post league W's and are in the RedHawks rear view mirror for the top spot in the conference.

Ohio State will be looking for a better effort in tonight's rematch in Oxford as they saw their record drop to 7-11-1 overall and 5-7-1-1 in the league. The Buckeyes' 17 points is good enough for 8th place and the final home ice slot if the CCHA playoffs began today.

Notes

• Reichard's shutout was his third on the season which is a new career high. Last year, Reichard posted two shutouts during a stellar freshman season.
• Given the winter break begins after tonight's game, it will be interesting to see if Miami coach Enrico Blasi goes with his typical Saturday goaltender (sophomore Connor Knapp) or if he goes with the red-hot Cody Reichard as this is the final league game for about a month, and as such, is very important for Miami.
  
• Wingels is just five goals behind his career high of 15 that was established during his freshman season with more than 18 games to play. He has responded both on and off the ice in his new role as RedHawk captain.
• Camper recorded the 100th point of his career with his assist on Wingels' second goal.
  
• The Buckeyes have been shutout three times this season and are averaging just 2.31 goals per game.
• Miami was 4 for 6 on the powerplay while Ohio State was 0 for 6.
• Miami has now successfully killed 23 consecutive opponent powerplays and Ohio State has not converted in their last 24 man advantage situations.
• Heeter made 27 stops as the RedHawks outshot the Buckeyes 33-17.
• A pro-Miami crowd of 4,496 was in attendance at Value City Arena.
• Tonight's game will be televised live across the great state of Ohio on ONN at 7pm.
  

#1 Miami v. Ohio State - 12/11/09 & 12/12/09

#1 Miami and Ohio State renew their rivalry this weekend

Miami and Ohio State will tangle in a weekend home-and-home with the opener in Columbus on Friday at 7pm. The Big Ten Network will stream this game live on its website. Saturday's rematch will be held in Oxford also at 7pm and will be televised live around the great state of Ohio on ONN.

• Miami leads the all-time series 58-56-11 but is 8-1-1 in the last ten meetings vs. Ohio State.
• This series will close the first half of the season with both teams off until the weekend of January 8.
  

• Miami is 11-2-5 overall and 8-1-3-1 in the CCHA (1st). The RedHawks have been #1 for 10 consecutive weeks which equals the school record set in 2007-08.
  
• Ohio State is 7-10-1 overall and 5-6-1-1 in the CCHA (7th).
  
• Ohio State freshman, Devin Krogh was named the CCHA Rookie of the Week for his efforts vs. Michigan. Krogh was a +6 in the two games with a goal in Friday's 5-3 victory and added an assist in Saturday's 2-1 loss.

Last Weekend
Miami and Ohio State went a combined 3-1 last weekend with Miami getting the home weekend sweep (and shutout) of then #14 Notre Dame 1-0 and 4-0. Ohio State split a home series with Michigan winning 5-3 on Friday and dropping the finale 2-1 on Saturday night.

Team Updates

• Scoring leaders for each team -
  
• Miami: Juniors Andy Miele 5-11-16 and Carter Camper 8-7-15 lead the team in scoring. The top scoring defenseman is sophomore Cameron Schilling with 1-7-8. Freshman Joe Hartman leads all Miami defensemen with 4 goals.
• Ohio State: Sophomore Zac Dalpe 9-9-18 and junior Peter Boyd 5-11-16 pace the Buckeyes while junior Shane Sims leads the defense in scoring with 2-5-7.
• Miami's Cody Reichard leads the nation in goals-against average at 1.45 and also sports a 93.4 save percentage (4th in the nation) with two shutouts. Needless to say he has shaken off the devastating loss to BU in the national title game quite well.
• Sophomore goaltender Cal Heeter looks to have taken over the position of starting netminder for the Buckeyes. Heeter, who had been starting on Saturdays in head coach John Markell's rotation system was between the pipes for both games last weekend against Michigan. Overall, Heeter is 6-3-1 with a 2.75 goals-against average and stellar 91.4 save percentage.
• Miami's other goaltender, sophomore Connor Knapp (2-1-3, 2.21 GAA, .911), is the brother of Ohio State freshman goaltender Chelsea Knapp who skates for the Buckeyes' women's ice hockey team. I suspect we'll see Cody Reichard on Friday night in Columbus and Knapp on Saturday at Steve Cady Arena.
  
• Overall, Miami is averaging just a shade under 3 goals per game but is giving up only 1.78 goals per contest which is good enough for 3rd in the country.
• OSU is averaging 2.4 goals per game and surrendering 2.9 goals per game meaning the Buckeyes will need to find a way to put the puck in the net against an incredibly stingy defense and be mindful in their own end.
  
• After this weekend's series, the Buckeyes will have faced the #1, 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7th ranked teams in this week's Pairwise rankings that determine the field for the 16-team NCAA tournament. That, my friends, is a difficult schedule.
• Miami killed all 15 Notre Dame powerplays last weekend in their sweep of the Irish. The RedHawk penalty kill is ranked 6th nationally at 88.7%. On the other hand, the Buckeyes powerplay unit has not connected in the past four games and has not converted its last 18 attempts.
  

Keys to the Weekend
These two teams don't have a lot of love for each other. For Ohio State to have an opportunity to steal a game this weekend, they need to play physical without taking dumb penalties. To date, they have been unable to do that. They also need John Albert and Kyle Reed to do what they do best against Miami and that is to score goals. Reed has 4-6-10 and Albert 3-6-9 against Miami with Reed netting his only career hat trick in a game last February in Oxford. Ohio State also needs much better defensive zone coverage and goaltending than they have gotten this season. With Cal Heeter now, apparently, assuming the starting goaltending role, this could be an area of improvement for Ohio State. For Miami, well, they simply need to do what they have been doing for the past nine months. Play sound, structured defense and use their size and speed to create mismatches and opportunities to put the puck in the net. Miami looked like a legitimate national title contender last weekend against Notre Dame. They were all over the Irish for the better part of both games and surrendered just 42 shots against over the two games. With scoring coming from all four lines and the defense, Miami is incredibly difficult to defend. If they maintain their balance and poise this weekend, they should emerge with two victories.

Fearless Predictions
Friday - Miami 3-0
Saturday - Miami 3-1


Extracurriculars
Last night was a big night for former Miamians in the pros.

• Former MU captain and current New Jersey Devil Andy Greene posted his first career two-goal game. Greene now has 5 goals and 12 assists on the season.
  

• "We're not an overpowering team offensively, so we need goals from our defensemen," (head coach Jacques) Lemaire said. "I always have a feeling that Andy is going to slow down, but he never does. He plays well every night. It doesn't matter who we're playing against. He's very good. He controls the puck and makes plays. I never thought he could be this good, but right now he's playing like an All-Star."
  

• Current San Jose Shark assistant captain Dan Boyle netted his 99th career goal.
• And, a senior on last season's national runner-up, Justin Mercier made his NHL debut last night with the youthful Colorado Avalanche. The former Miami sniper was credited with 7:55 of ice time and was -1.

College Weekend Roundup - 12/7/09

RedHawks complete sweep of Notre Dame, Michigan earns split against the Buckeyes

Oxford, Ohio -

The #1 ranked team in the nation was slumping. Mired in a 1-1-4 stretch that included four straight road games, Miami returned to the friendly confines of Steve Cady Arena to host the #14 Notre Dame Fighting Irish. On Friday, behind 24 saves from sophomore goaltender Cody Reichard and a shorthanded goal from freshman Joe Hartman, Miami got back into the win column claiming a hard-fought 1-0 win over the Irish. But, on Saturday the RedHawks left themselves more margin for error by completing the weekend sweep by again shutting out the Fighting Irish 4-0 on the strength of 18 saves by sophomore netminder Connor Knapp. Sophomore defenseman Cameron Schilling had three helpers and Miami got powerplay goals from junior captain Tommy Wingels and junior center Pat Cannone.

With the win, Miami improved to 11-2-5 overall and 8-1-3-1 in CCHA play (the last '1' is for a shootout win that contributes one point to the totals). Miami has earned 28 league points and holds a five-point lead over second place Michigan State and six points over third place Ferris State who has two games at hand (CCHA regulation and OT wins are worth three points each). The Irish fell to 7-7-4 overall and 4-4-4-2 in the league, good enough for a tie for fifth place.

Junior Carter Camper had a goal and an assist for the RedHawks and leads the squad with 8 markers. Junior Justin Vaive completed the scoring for Miami with his third of the year at 16:55 of the third period effectively ending any remaining drama.

Sophomore Connor Knapp saw his record improve to 2-1-3 as he notched his second shutout of the season. Knapp's goals-against average declined to an impressive 2.20 and his save percentage improved to 91.1. Miami head coach Enrico Blasi was pleased with the effort of his sophmore netminder.

“Connor made some nice saves when he had to tonight and had a very good performance overall,” said Blasi. “They have some really good players on their team, and he kept us on top throughout the game.” (USCHO.com)

The victory over the Fighting Irish will enable Miami to tighten its grip on the number one ranking in the polls where they have held the top spot for the past eight weeks. More importantly, Miami has overcome the fourth toughest schedule in the nation during their first 18 games and finds themselves in good position for a run at the CCHA regular season title. That run will start next week with two games against archrival Ohio State and marks the official start of the second half of the season. Additionally, Miami is rated #2 in the Pairwise rankings that determine the NCAA tournament bracket. With sixteen teams in the post-season event, finishing in the top 4 of the Pairwise would enable the RedHawks to obtain a #1 seed enhancing their chances of advancing in the tournament. We'll look more closely at the national numbers as the season progresses, but at the halfway mark, Miami has done what they've needed to give themselves a chance to accomplish their season's goals. And, at least on paper, Miami's second half schedule is a little easier than the first, but that's why they play the games and there is still a lot of hockey to be played.

For the weekend, Miami's penalty kill unit was a perfect 15 for 15 helping lead the RedHawks to the first back-to-back shutouts over the same opponent, and just the fourth time its happened at any time in school history. The PK unit is now ranked 6th nationally, killing 88.7% of shorthanded opportunities.



Columbus, Ohio -

After winning Friday night's opener 5-3, the Ohio State Buckeyes were stymied by the Michigan Wolverines 2-1 at Value City Arena on the strength of powerplay goals by senior captain Chris Summers and junior Matt Rust and 26 saves by junior goaltender Bryan Hogan.

The Wolverines got on the board first when Summers' scored from the point at 9:50 of the first period. And, on the game-winning goal, Rust would knock home a rebound 21 seconds into the third period to capitalize on a 5x3 powerplay opportunity. Ohio State would close within one with only 11 seconds remaining as junior John Albert scored his fourth goal of the season with the help of an extra attacker. Down 2-0, head coach John Markell pulled goaltender Cal Heeter for an extra skater and it enabled the Buckeyes to trim the deficit to one, but they were unable to tie it despite having one last rush into the Michigan zone.

With the win, Michigan was able to move out of the basement of the CCHA improving to 8-8 overall and 4-6 in the CCHA, good enough for 10th place. Meanwhile, Ohio State fell to 7-10-1 and 5-6-1-1 in league play and is right in the middle of the packed league standings sitting in 7th place.

For the evening, Michigan was 2-6 on the powerplay and those extra chances did not escape the notice of coach John Markell who was upset about the Buckeyes' lack of discipline.

“We gave them three five-on-threes this weekend with hitting to the head,” Markell said. “We just cost ourselves another game with a stupid penalty. What is disturbing is they are supposedly tough and you’re not going to rattle another guy. They have a facemask on; it means nothing. We’re getting it on retaliatory. It cost us the game. When you give that team five-on-threes, they’re going to score. That is the difference.” (USCHO.com)

Moving forward, the Buckeyes have one more series before their holiday break. However, the road does not get easier as they will take on archrival and #1 ranked Miami in a home-and-home. Friday's game will take place in Columbus at 7pm and the rematch a night later at Steve Cady Arena in Oxford also at 7pm (ONN). In fact, after Saturday's series finale against the RedHawks, the Buckeyes do not play again until hosting in-state rival Bowling Green January 8 and 9 at Value City Arena.

Friday Night Ice

At the Subway Holiday Classic in Grand Forks, N.D., the Ohio representatives left on the short end of both games as #6 Bemidji State defeated the #1 Miami RedHawks 3-2 and host #4 North Dakota knocked off Ohio State 4-1.

In the opener,

• #6 Bemidji State scored a single goal in the first and second periods to take an early lead, but Miami came to life in the third evening the score before BSU senior captain Chris McKelvie sent home a rebound past Miami sophomore netminder Cody Reichard with just a little over three minutes to play to avenge last spring's loss to Miami in the Frozen Four.
  
• Miami's two goals were scored by junior Carter Camper who has started to heat up after a lengthy goal drought.
• It was Reichard's first loss this season (8-1-1), and by far his worst effort as he allowed two gigantic rebound (literally and figuratively) goals and made just 15 saves as Miami's defensive effort was superb despite the loss. It was Miami's first loss in regulation as the RedHawks fall to 9-2-4.
• Miami must now work to avoid a weekend sweep as they face the #4 North Dakota Fighting Sioux at Ralph Engelstad Arena at 8:30pm. The game will be televised on Fox College Sports - Atlantic.

In the nightcap,

• #4 North Dakota shook off a nice effort by the Buckeyes as they netted three third period goals to open some daylight. The Sioux led just 1-0 after two periods as junior netminder Dustin Carlson made 29 saves to keep OSU in the game.
• OSU's lone goal was scored by sophomore Zac Dalpe who leads the Buckeyes with nine goals and 17 points.
• With the loss, Ohio State falls to 5-9-1 and will face #6 Bemidji State at 4:30pm this evening at Ralph Engelstad Arena looking for a weekend split.
  

Subway Holiday Classic Preview

What: Subway Holiday Classic
Who: #1 Miami/Ohio State vs. #6 Bemidji State/#4 North Dakota
Where: Ralph Engelstad Arena, Grand Forks, N.D.
When: Friday November 27 and Saturday November 28 (5pm and 8:30pm each night)

TV: Both games featuring North Dakota will be televised at 8:30pm EST on FCS-Atlantic

Complete Weekend Schedule:
Friday
#1 Miami (9-1-4) v. #6 Bemidji State (10-1-1) - 5pm
Ohio State (5-8-1) v. #4 North Dakota (7-4-1) - 8:30pm

Saturday
Ohio State v. #6 Bemidji State - 5pm
#1 Miami v. #4 North Dakota - 8:30pm

When the Subway Holiday Classic was announced last summer, several things stuck out immediately.

• The Ohio Hockey Classic was to be no more. With Ohio State hosting, the event had been held annually since 2004 with Miami also participating in each one.
• Therefore, both squads would need to find another tournament, or series, to fill out their non-conference schedules.
• Though Miami and Ohio State both made the NCAA tournament as at-large teams last season, both had room to improve their strength of schedule to help improve their chances of getting into the dance. As a result, both teams drew #4 seeds (the lowest in the 16-team tournament) and Ohio State was the final at-large team selected.

Not only that, but the date of the new event was scheduled the same weekend as the long-running College Hockey Showcase featuring four of the five hockey-playing schools of the Big Ten. The College Hockey Showcase has always been a fly in the ointment for Ohio State because as the fifth hockey-playing member of the Big Ten, they have always been excluded from this opportunity. As a result, Ohio State faces Wisconsin and Minnesota (of the WCHA) much less frequently than their CCHA conference mates Michigan and Michigan State. As a result, the Buckeyes have been looking for an opportunity to stick it to the other Big Ten schools for some time. The Ohio Hockey Classic was developed by OSU to host their own holiday tournament that could rival the Showcase. But due to scheduling issues, it never worked out that the tournament featured highly regarded programs aside from Miami. In fact, last year's OHC featured Army and Clarkson, not exactly a packed field and past juggernauts included Holy Cross and RPI. As a result, attendance suffered and though they never said it publicly, it was clear Miami wanted out. Frankly, the also defunct Lefty McFadden Invitational had arguably better fields including North Dakota, BU, Wisconsin and Denver but it too failed due to flagging attendance despite the good draws. And, Miami had been rumored for the past few years to be working to schedule a series with North Dakota. In fact, the Sioux were the last team from the WCHA to defeat Miami when they beat them 3-0 at the 2005 Lefty McFadden in Dayton.

Simply put, the Subway Hockey Classic will help all four teams as the winners will have quality victories on their resumes come tournament selection time but the losers will gain strength-of-schedule points and valuable experience. Not only that, but this event has significantly more buzz than the College Hockey Showcase considering that both Michigan and Minnesota are currently under .500 and unranked and Wisconsin and Michigan State are both recovering from subpar seasons that saw both programs miss the NCAA tournament. In fact, only Michigan made the dance last season whereas all four participants in Grand Forks made the tournament including two who went all the way to the Frozen Four.

Friday's first game between #1 Miami and #6 Bemidji State is a rematch of April's national semifinal where the RedHawks outhit, outclassed and outscored the upstart Beavers winning 4-1 in a game that really wasn't as close as the score might suggest. The Beavers, who play in College Hockey America, will be moving to the WCHA next season at the conclusion of the CHA's run. The conference will fold after this year so while they do not get a chance to play their soon-to-be conference partner North Dakota this weekend, they are firmly securing their place at the table with larger, more established D-1 hockey schools with games against two upper-tier CCHA programs. While a relative newcomer to Division 1, BSU has experienced success at the Division 2 and 3 levels winning national championships on each stage. It should come as no surprise that a program with a tradition of winning would begin to establish themselves on the D-1 level as their trip to the 2009 Frozen Four would suggest.

Bemidji State is coached by Tom Serratore (BSU '87) who has compiled a 150-119-30 record in nine seasons at his alma mater. Serratore prefers a fast-paced game where speed and puck pressure is a point of emphasis. In their NCAA tournament wins over Notre Dame and Cornell, the Beavers skated both squads out of the rink and made the most of their opportunities. However, when they faced Miami, they faced a team with NHL size who could skate and hit, the Beavers were clearly overmatched. Miami's puck possession style effectively negated the Beavers ability to isolate puck carriers and they were unable force poor decisions and turnovers. The point of Serratore's system is to create turnovers and enable the Beavers to use their speed in counter-attacks and odd-man rushes. In the national semifinal, current Miami captain Tommy Wingels (Wilmette, Ill.) scored twice and assisted on another goal helping Miami completely dominate Bemidji State. The RedHawks set the tone early with their physical size and strength by throwing crushing checks all over the ice. I suspect Miami coach Rico Blasi (Miami '94) will attempt to duplicate that effort tonight in Grand Forks.

In addition to the rematch angle, this game features the top two defensive teams in college hockey. The Beavers lead the nation by allowing just 1.67 goals per game while Miami is second at 1.71. Both likely starting netminders have been superb. BSU's sophomore Dan Bakala (Calgary, Alberta) is 7-1-1 with a 1.64 goal against average and 93.8 save percentage while Miami's Cody Reichard (Celina, Ohio) has been even better at 8-0-2, 1.44 and 93.6, respectively.

The Beavers are led by sophomore defenseman Brad Hunt (Ridge Meadows, B.C.) and junior forward Matt Read (Ilderton, Ont.). In last weekend's sweep of CHA foe Alabama-Huntsville, Hunt registered a hat trick and four points on Saturday night demonstrating his ability to create and score from the blue line. In the national semifinal, Read scored the Beavers' lone goal on the powerplay making a nifty move in front of Miami goaltender Cody Reichard to deke the defense and deposited the puck in the net. Miami will have their hands full with the two of them and will have to deal with the Beavers speed. The key will be if Miami can effectively control the flow and pace using their size advantage as they did in D.C. to punish the Beavers every time they have the chance. Miami leads the all-time series with BSU 3-0 with Rico Blasi at the helm for each game.

Last weekend, Miami won and tied at Western Michigan with Cody Reichard earning a 3-0 shutout in net on Friday and Connor Knapp (York, N.Y.) surrendering just one goal in earning a 2-1 shootout win which is viewed as a tie nationally.

In the nightcap, the Ohio State Buckeyes will take on tournament host and seven-time NCAA champion #4 North Dakota. The Sioux are the second WCHA team the Buckeyes have faced this season. Earlier, OSU split a home weekend series with Denver and are 0-2 all-time against the Fighting Sioux with both prior games coming in Grand Forks - in 1979. So, you can probably throw out any meaning to those games on tonight's match.

North Dakota is coached by Dave Hakstol (UND '92) who has compiled a 137-75-20 record in six seasons. While the overall record might not look that impressive, Hakstol has guided the Sioux to five Frozen Four appearances in his six seasons with last year's first round loss to New Hampshire the only blemish in the tournament's first weekend. Yet Hakstol is still searching for his first national title at North Dakota, something the school has not won since 2000. With a $135 million arena and a large, passionate fan base, Hakstol probably needs to win a title to cement his place at the school. It's not unreasonable to believe the school will move on should he be unable to get the program back on top within a year or two. Hockey is to North Dakota as football is to Ohio State, so you get the idea.

The Sioux are loaded with NHL draft picks including senior captain Chris VandeVelde (Moorhead, Minn.) who leads the team with 12 points on four goals. VandeVelde made the decision to return to school after last season's NCAA tournament loss which was quite a relief to Sioux fans who had to lament over the loss of former Hobey Baker Award winner Ryan Duncan and his skill and speed. However, senior defenseman Chay Genoway (Morden, Manitoba) who has 10 points in nine games was injured two weeks ago and missed North Dakota's series at Denver where the Sioux were swept 1-0 and 3-2 by the Pioneers. While he might be a small defenseman, Genoway does a lot to control the game by moving the puck out of the defensive zone, and obviously, he chips in on the scoresheet as well. Currently, Genoway is not expected to play this weekend which is a blow knowing the offensive talent the Buckeyes and RedHawks possess. However, sophomore goaltender Brad Eidsness (Chestermere, Alberta) has been solid stopping nearly 93% of shots on goal while allowing just 1.69 goals per game. Whatever the Sioux lose defensively by not having Genoway is more than made up for by the presence of Eidsness who is building on his stellar freshman campaign and showing no signs of a "sophomore slump."

The Buckeyes are coming off a rough weekend at Big Rapids, Mich. where they were swept in CCHA play by upstart Ferris State 8-1 and 6-5. On Friday, the Bulldogs simply overwhelmed the Buckeyes, and to add insult to injury, inserted their third goaltender who had never before played a game at the Division 1 level to play the entire third period. Ohio State was not so certain as they rotated both starter junior Dustin Carlson (Forest Lake, Minn.) and sophomore Cal Heeter (St. Louis, Mo.) to no avail. And, on Saturday, the Buckeyes blew leads of 3-0 and 5-2 eventually falling in overtime to the Bulldogs. As a result, Ohio State took no league points as overtime losses do not earn a point as in the NHL (and that's the way it should be).

Saturday's meeting between Ohio State and Bemidji State will be the first ever between the two schools. And, Miami and North Dakota will meet for just the third time overall and the first time since 2005 with the Sioux holding a 2-0 advantage.

Fearless predictions -

Regardless of who wins this weekend, goals will be earned, not given.

Friday -

Miami 3, Bemidji State 1

North Dakota 4, Ohio State 1

Saturday -

Bemidji State 4, Ohio State 3

Miami 3, North Dakota 2