College Hockey   CC Tigers and USAFA Falcons Hockey

Former Tiger Bill Sweatt was called up to Vancouver on Sunday. He recorded no points in two NHL games last season. He has 29 points (12 goals) in 56 AHL games, which is on pace for his best pro season (46 in 80 games).

Midwest regional

No. 4 seed St. Cloud State 4, No. 2 Miami 1

TOLEDO, Ohio — Freshman forward Joey Benik and junior forward Cory Thorson each scored two goals to help send St. Cloud State to the 2013 Frozen Four with a 4-1 win against Miami on Sunday afternoon at Huntington Center.

Congratulations to UMass-Lowell, coached by former CC assistants Norm Bazin and Jason Lammers.  for reaching its first Frozen Four.  The River Hawks roster includes junior assistant captain Josh Holmstrom of Colorado Springs.

Yale reached its first Frozen Four since 1952 at the expense of Minnesota and then North Dakota.

Here is a good look at North Dakota’s year with a good reminder how much the team lost last offseason and how that affected this past campaign. Here is the Herald’s postgame video.

The Michigan State coach asks the Spartan fans to be more patient while he rebuilds the program. Minnesota looks to next season. One Minnesota columnist says UM coach Don Lucia should be fired.

Midwest regional

No. 4 St. Cloud State 5, No. 1 Notre Dame 1

Freshman forward Joey Benik scored two goals and added an assist and senior forward Ben Hanowski had a goal and an assist to help pace St. Cloud State to a 5-1 win against Notre Dame on Saturday in the NCAA Midwest Regional at Huntington Center.

SCSU scored three in the second period to pull away for a 4-0 lead. The Huskies take on No. 2 Miami, which downed Minnesota State 4-0, a 2 p.m. MT on Sunday.

No. 2 Miami 4, No. 3 seed Minnesota State 0

TOLEDO, Ohio – The Minnesota State Mavericks were defeated by the Miami RedHawks, 4-0, in NCAA Midwest Regional semifinal action on Saturday at Huntington Center in Toledo. Four different players scored for Miami.

West regional

No. 4 Yale 4, No. 2 North Dakota 1

GRAND RAPIDS — Senior forward Corban Knight scored a goal but North Dakota surrendered four goals in the third period and was defeated by Yale, 4-1, in the NCAA West Regional final at Van Andel Arena.

Yale’s Josh Balch scored just his third goal of the season to get the Bulldogs on the board with 7:35 remaining in regulation, and Jesse Root – who scored the overtime winner against Minnesota in Friday’s other semifinal – notched the eventual winner on the power play with just 4:56 remaining.

A goal by Stu Wilson with 2:21 left put Yale up 3-1, and Kenny Agostino rounded out the scoring with an empty netter at the 19:00 mark.

UND opened the scoring 7:22 into the game on senior center Corban Knight’s 16th goal of the season , beating Bulldogs’ goalie Jeff Malcolm (24 saves), who benefited from three goal posts hit by UND.

UND junior Clarke Saunders made 35 saves against an aggressive Yale team that out shot UND 39-25, including a 28-17 edge over the final two periods. It could have been worse if not for 16 blocks by North Dakota.

Sometimes it comes down to being there: Former Tiger Richard Bachman picked up a win while facing no shots on goal  in Dallas’ victory over the Wild Friday night.

Jack Hillen is logging a lot of minutes for the Capitals since his return from injury.

Colorado Springs native Ben Holmstrom skated in practice for the first time since a knee injury.

He will not return to action this season for AHL Adirondack.

Bemidji State has commits from the Fitzgerald triplets (Gerry, Leo and Myles) who starred in the movie “Baby Geniuses” and the subsequent sequel “Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2.” 

They  have fared better in hockey than the movies as the Western College Hockey Blog points out in the previous link. They are the Nos. 1-3 scorers for the Victoria Grizzlies of the BCHL.

Last-place Alaska-Anchorage announced Friday that coach Dave Shyiak will not return next season.

His contract expired after this season when the Seawolves went 4-25-7.

Midwest regional

No. 2 North Dakota 2, No. 3 Niagara 1

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — North Dakota’s Andrew MacWilliam and Danny Kristo scored 63 seconds apart to put North Dakota ahead 2-1 early in the third period.

No. 4 Yale 3, No. 1 Minnesota 2 OT

GRAND RAPIDS — Nate Schmidt and Zach Budish each scored a goal in the third period but Minnesota was defeated by Yale, 3-2, in overtime in the opening game of the NCAA West Regional at Van Andel Arena on Friday when Jesse Root scored in an NCAA Tournament nine seconds into the extra frame.

Northeast regional

No. 2 New Hampshire 5, No. 3 Denver 2

MANCHESTER, N.H. — New Hampshire cored four unanswered to pull away from Denver in the final two periods.

No. 1 UMass-Lowell 6, No. 4 Wisconsin 1

MANCHESTER, N.H. — Freshman forward Nic Kerdiles scored a power-play goal but the Wisconsin Badgers were defeated by the UMass Lowell River Hawks, 6-1, on Friday in the first game of the NCAA Northeast Regional at Verizon Wireless Arena.

Here is a look at the Northeast regional which involves three Colorado Springs-area players. A record five CS players, including UMass-Lowell junior Josh Holmstrom, pictured, play in the NCAAs on Friday.

Here is the Post’s Denver-New Hampshire preview, how the Pioneers followed the same practice schedule they used in 2004; a look at the success of putting brothers Nick and Quentin Shore on the same line; and Post writer Adrian Dater returns to his home state.

Here is the TV/video stream schedule for this weekend.

The West regional is previewed and here are five players in Grand Rapids, Mich. to watch.

Here are plenty of  links to articles on North Dakota and its first-round opponent Niagara. Here are the beat writer’s article, which includes worries about poor attendance in Grand Rapids wit no Michigan teams in the NCAAs this year . Western Michigan finished No. 16 in the Pairwise rankings and missed because of the Canisius AQ. Michigan fell short of an AQ in the final CCHA championship game to Notre Dame. It is the first time in 22 years the Wolverines are not in the NCAAs.

The Midwest regional is previewed. Boston College has a smooth path ahead of it at the East regional.

USCHO produced some thorough regional previews: East, Northeast, Midwest, and West.

Here is the Mankato Free Press’ look at first-round foe Miami and a larger piece on coach Mike Hastings.

Ten storylines to look for this weekend. Here are some predictions: Goal Gophers,

The annual call for NCAA Tournament games at the top seed’s home arenas is made. Here is a look at the trend of regionalization for the NCAA now affecting hockey.

Here are the pairings:

The dates, sites, times and pairings with WCHA teams bolded follows:

Northeast Regional, March 29-30
Verizon Wireless Arena, Manchester, New Hampshire

Friday, March 29, 4:30 p.m. Eastern time
No. 1 Massachusetts-Lowell (26-10-2) vs. No. 4 Wisconsin (22-12-7)

Friday, March 29, 8 p.m. 
No. 2 New Hampshire (19-11-7) vs. No. 3 Denver (20-13-5)

Men’s Frozen Four, April 11 and 13
CONSOL Energy Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Thursday, April 11, 4:30 and 8 p.m. Eastern time, ESPN2/WatchESPN (order of games TBD)
East Regional Champion vs. Midwest Regional Champion
Northeast Regional Champion vs. West Regional Champion

Saturday, April 13, 7 p.m. Eastern time, ESPN/WatchESPN

National Championship

The looming NHL trade deadline has five CC seniors still awaiting word on their future playing careers.

“I am just waiting for an opportunity to present itself,” goalie Joe Howe said on Wednesday.

It doesn’t matter if you are one of the six free agents or a draft pick like wing Scott Winkler.

He was drafted five years ago by a management team that no longer heads the Dallas organization.

“Five years is a long time ago,” he said Wednesday afternoon. “I have not heard much so far. I would love to play anywhere.”

The 1 p.m. MT April 3 trade deadline is a factor because organizations are not sure what their depth will be at the ECHL and AHL level; where the seven Tigers may get their start.

A good example is the Jarome Iginla trade that sent St. Cloud State forward Ben Hanowski and Yale’s Kenny Agostin into Calgary’s talent pool from the Penguins organization. Expect other moves that will shift draft pocks around, affecting available roster spots at the minor league level.

Once the North American possibilities become clear, some Tigers will consider going overseas to play. European league pay can be better than ECHL salaries and has other perks for a single guy who can share an apartment with several teammates.

“I want to stay here but I would consider overseas if the situation is right,” center Rylan Schwartz said. Schwartz leads Division I with 53 points (20 goals) and is getting some feelers already.

Ultimately, the seniors, which also includeswing William Rapuzzi, need to be patient and be ready to move the moment the ink is dry.

“Right now, we are all just waiting by the phone,” defenseman Mike Boivin said. “Once it happens we will be ready to go.”

Wing Andrew Hamburg and defenseman Joe Marciano were the first to sign. Both made their ECHL debuts Wednesday night.

Marciano made two shots for Orlando while Hamburg played for the  San Francisco Bulls. Neither recorded a point.

CC seniors Andrew Hamburg  and Joe Marciano were the first of the seven CC seniors to sign pro contracts.

Both made their ECHL debuts Wednesday night.

Marciano made two shots for the Orlando Solar Bears while Hamburg played for the  San Francisco Bulls.

Neither recorded a point.

The next two regular-season games will serve a tryout for the two former Tigers because their new teams must submit a playoff roster on Monday. No contract details were disclosed.

Hamburg finished his CC career with 52 points (29 assists), including 18 (six goals) his final season.

Marciano tallied eight points (six assists) his senior season to finish with 26 career points (19 assists).

The National Collegiate Hockey Conference announced its inaugural composite schedule earlier Wednesday.

Here is the CC schedule with 24 league games and 10 nonconference contests:

CC 2013-14 schedule

Tuesday and Fridays 7:37 p.m.; 7:07 p.m. Saturdays

Date      Opponent         

Oct. 5, 2013         New Brunswick (exhib.)

Oct. 12  USA U-18 (exhib.)

Oct. 18  Minnesota-Duluth *(CBS Sports Network)

Oct. 19  Minnesota-Duluth *

Oct. 25-26 at Clarkson

Nov. 1-2               at Western Michigan *

Nov. 8                   Denver *

Nov. 9                   at Denver *

Nov. 19                 Air Force

Nov. 22-23          at St. Cloud State *

Nov. 29-30          New Hampshire

Dec. 6-7                Nebraska-Omaha *

Dec. 13-14           at Wisconsin

Jan. 4, 2014         Brown

Jan. 10-11            at North Dakota *

Jan.  17-18           Providence

Jan. 24-25            Miami *

Feb. 7-8                at Minnesota-Duluth *

Feb. 14-15           Western Michigan *

Feb.  21                                at Denver *

Feb. 22                 Denver *

Feb. 28-March 1               at Nebraska-Omaha *

March 7-8            St. Cloud State *

March 14-16       NCHC first-round playoffs

March 21             NCHC semifinals (Target Center, CBS Sports Network)

March 22             NCHC third-place, championship games (Target Center, CBS Sports Network)

March 28-30       NCAA regionals

April 10-12           NCAA Frozen Four (Philadelphia)

Two of the three Minnesota State players injured against Wisconsin last Thursday are cleared to play this weekend.

Wisconsin is 21-5-5 since Nic Kerdiles joined the team following his 10-game NCAA suspension.

Here is a video preview of the North Dakota-Niagara NCAA Tournament game by the Grand Forks Herald.

Michigan’s Jon Merrill has left the program to sign with the Devils.

Here is a look at the NCAA Midwest regional in Toledo, the West regional in Grand Rapids, Mich. and the history of other first-round match-ups.

Here is the national/regional  TV/video stream schedule for the tournament.

David Quinn was hired to take over the Boston University program.

Former Tiger Richard Bachman’s stay in the AHL was a short one.

Bachman, 25, returned to Dallas after playing two games for Texas with a 2-0-0 record with a .929 save percentage and a 2.00 goals against average (GAA).

The 5-foot-10, 180-pound goaltender went 5-1-0 for the AHL affiliate this season. The Salt Lake City native, who calls Highlands Ranch home, has appeared in 26 NHL contests (10-8-2, .894 saves, 3.13 gaa). He was Dallas’ fourth-round selection (120th overall) in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.

Cody Lampl was suspended for Monday’s game after being called for kneeing by ECHL officials over the weekend.

Brian McMillin scored a power-play goal to lift Allen to a win in its CHL regular-season finale.

Nate Prosser is interviewed (video) after his hometown of Elk River was chosen as the site for Hockey Day Minnesota 2014. Definitely worth the click seeing where he grew up playing pond hockey.

Western Michigan junior defenseman Dan DeKeyser is leaving the Broncos as expected while Minnesota-Duluth sophomore defenseman Chris Casto is also headed to the pros. That raises the total to three so far this offseason.