College Hockey   CC Tigers and USAFA Falcons Hockey

Here’s the Eric Rud feature that was published in Friday’s Gazette.

WCHA commissioner Bruce McLeod will visit Alaska-Fairbanks in mid-August to check out the facilities and meet administration, adding fuel to the notion that the Nanooks may become a member of the league in 2013.

Fairbanks’ departure may make the CCHA, which could be down to three teams (Bowling Green, Ferris State and Lake Superior State) by 2013, more attractive to current AHA members Canisius, Mercyhurst, Niagara and Robert Morris which reportedly are not interested in adding a trip to Alaska to their conference schedule. Maybe they’re just scared by the Nanooks pregame video.

Here’s a column showing how tough the NCHC will be and that SCSU would be better off staying in the WCHA. Here’s a feature on an SCSU player headed to the U.S. worlds evaluation camp.

Denver added another 2013 commit while North Dakota replaced J.T. Miller with another for this upcoming season after Miller bolted for the OHL.

Here’s Miami’s reaction to its top preseason ranking with some info on the team.

College Hockey Inc. has some profiles of current coaches Michigan’s Red Berenson, Notre Dame’s Jeff Jackson and Canisius’ Dave Smith. Here’s a link to earlier profiles including DU’s George Gwozdecky.

Alaska-Fairbanks will be one of the topics during today’s WCHA conference call. There’s a good chance news may come out of this meeting between the five remaining members and Northern Michigan.

Here’s a blog from the SC Times wth more NCHC reaction, a far-ranging column on what the sport needs to do nationwide and some more NCHC humor.

Badgers beat writer Andy Baggot wonders if there is some bad karma for the Big Ten and NCHC schools.

Upcoming CC opponent RPI added a goalie commit for this season.

This columnist is concerned about Northeastern’s choice of head coach.

Here’s a recent update on the Sioux nickname debate.

The Wisconsin women deserve a trip to the White House.

CC assistant athletic director Scott Lowenberg said 30 season tickets for the 2011-12 campaign sold on Wednesday after CC’s No. 8 preseason ranking from Inside College Hockey was published online and in The Gazette Tuesday afternoon.

“That’s a lot for one day,” he said. “September is usually our top month to sell, so to be doing this in July is great.”

More than 500 season tickets remain. Only 16 lower bowl side seats between the goal lines are left while about 100 are left in the lower bowl ends and corners.

The remaining seats are in the upper bowl including some $229 locations along the sides.

The $149 season ticket sections are almost sold out. Go to CCTigers.com for details.

Lee Sweatt's foot may have been hurting, but that did little to dampen his spirits after scoring the game-winner in his NHL debut earlier this season.

Former Tiger Lee Sweatt’s foot was broken when he blocked a shot during his Canucks’ debut, when he scored his first NHL, the game-winner, according to the Vancouver Province: 

“On my very next shift, Shea Weber took a slap shot and I blocked it with my foot. I finished the game but I could barely walk,” Sweatt said.

“Everyone knows he has basically the hardest shot in the league. What are the chances?”

The X-rays showed severe bruising hours later, but no break. It’s possible the foot was too swollen to detect a fracture. Sweatt rested his injured foot during the all-star break and was well enough to play two more games before the Canucks were set to send him down to the AHL.

But the morning before he was to be on a plane headed for Manitoba, he blocked another shot in practice with the Canucks and the foot was shattered. So was his season.

The article goes on to sat that he is healthy and will be in the Ottawa Senators’ training camp in five weeks. He signed as a free agent earlier this month.

For more of the Kalamazoo Gazette’s through coverage of the WMU coach hire, click here for a story about Andy Murray, another with reaction from players and a third from the assistant coaches.

Denver retains its veteran assistant too.

Minnesota-Duluth will hand out its national championship rings and team awards on Friday.

No news is good news for the Atlantic Hockey Association after four member schools met with the CCHA about joining that league in 2013. I’ll update as more info about the meeting trickles out.

Here’s more on the NCHC and how the battle between NCAA hockey and the Canadian major juniors is turning against the colleges.

Red Berenson took time off from Michigan hockey to play some hockey in San Jose. He also lost a goalie recruit, to Kitchener of the OHL,  according to this quote from a UM press release:  “John Gibson has decided not to attend the University of Michigan or to play college hockey.”

Michigan State lost one to the OHL as well.

The USHL announced its 2011-12 schedule.

Former Colorado College wing Tyler Johnson, pictured left, was one of the first two forwards signed by the ECHL expansion franchise Chicago Express, the team announced Tuesday afternoon.

The Eastern Conference Express begin play on Oct. 15 at Toledo. The Express are not scheduled to play the Colorado Eagles during the regular season.

Johnson was fourth on the Tigers in scoring last season with 37 points, including a team-high 20 goals. Johnson recorded 82 points (45 goals) in 154 career games.

Inside College Hockey released its preseason top 10 with Colorado College coming in at No. 8 thanks to the return of leading scorer Jaden Schwartz, which INCH listed as a preseason Hobey Baker hopeful, a deep group of forwards and a high regard for goalie Joe Howe.

Miami, soon to be a league rival in the new National Collegiate Hockey Conference in 2013, was No. 1, followed by Notre Dame, North Dakota, Yale and Denver.

CC nonconference foe Union (Dec. 31) is No. 6 followed by Boston University, CC, Minnesota-Duluth and No. 10 Michigan.

According to these rankings, CC has seven games (four vs DU) against top 10 foes.

Northeastern made its coaching hire official as did Western Michigan, which now sets its sights on enticing the NCHC. Here’s a Wisconsin connection to the WMU hire and immediate reaction in Kalamazoo.

Wisconsin is down to one captain but retains its top scorer. The Badgers strength coach is why a lot of former Badgers head to Madison in the offseason.

Minnesota-Duluth’s players may be headed to the White House in September.

Matty Thomas was officially announced as the new Denver volunteer assistant coach.

RPI, a late October road foe for CC, announced its incoming freshman class.

The Grand Forks Herald has several items of note including the Clarkson-UND game in Winnipeg, more on the TV deal and other loose ends.

Penn State benefactor Terry Pagula could finance a new hockey rink in Buffalo that would help Canisius (with Niagara soon to follow) move from the AHA into the CCHA.

Here’s a video interview of Penn State coach and former Tiger Guy Gadowsky on his first few months on the job.

COURTESY KALAMAZO GAZETTE

Western Michigan announced that it will make its new head coach hire known at 10 a.m. Mountain on Tuesday.

Numerous sources on Twitter — the first on my feed was the Grand Forks Herald — since that Monday morning announcement have said that Andy Murray, 60, pictured left, will be the Broncos coach.

The Kalamazoo Gazette has since had its sources confirm the hire and the pay: about $275,000.

CC longtime assistant Joe Bonnett will be not be the hire, which is good news for the Tigers and their fans.

Getting Murray should strengthen WMU’s chance at making the NCHC as the eighth team after Notre Dame. 

Media reports say Jim Madigan will be named the next coach at Northeastern, where he played. He was a scout for Pittsburgh (NHL) for the last 5 seasons.

That fills the last of the head coach openings.

There’s more evidence of a solid basis for the rumored interest by Versus/NBC on a college hockey TV deal.  That news could come down quite soon with rumors of a Friday night game of the week (starting after Jan. 1?) and each conference making an appearance at least twice including Atlantic Hockey.

More negative feelings about the NCHC and a look to the future at St. Cloud State.

The Sioux nickname meeting between state officials and the NCAA is now set for Aug. 12.

Here’s a good recap of the offseason so far from a midwest college hockey perspective. 

Here’s a blog talking about the old battle between major juniors and college.

A fan blogger rates the top five WCHA coaches. CC fans will not like this.

Now a glimpse of the upcoming Penn State arena.

RPI’s fan blog discusses the Engineers’ roster a bit. CC travels there in late October. The same blog theorizes about where things will shake out in the college hockey world.

Here’s the CCHA’s composite schedule. Glad to see Alabama-Huntsville popping up here and there.