Three Stars: December 17-23

3. 2012-2013 ACHA Division 2 Rankings
2012-2013 ACHA Women's Division 2 Rankings
(achahockey.org)

Awkwardly, the semester-end rankings for both the men's and women's ACHA teams were released after this past week's Club Sandwich post, so I'll address them briefly here.

Men: The Ice Lions, thanks largely to a win over then-Southeast No. 2 Rowan on December 15, moved from fourth to second in the region. While just two spots, the significance is much larger than that: the top two teams in each region earn autobids to the ACHA national championships, bypassing the regional playoffs. The trick now, of course, is to stay there until the end of the regular season.

Women: Pat Fung's crew also moved up, from fifth overall (fourth in the East Region) to fourth overall (third in the East Region). Like the men, the team's current position would qualify them for a nationals bid - which would be quite the story as a first-year organization built largely through the hard work of student leaders.

2. How Stuff Works - Part 1: Varsity vs. Club Hockey
How Stuff Works - Part 2: NCAA D1 Conference Breakdown
(Black Shoe Diaries)

IcersGuy at BSD is putting together a series of primers for those new to this whole NCAA hockey thing - and the comments are proof that he's doing an excellent job of it. If you want to be into Penn State hockey and don't know what any of us are talking about, this would be my recommended place to start.

1. BIG TEN Men's Hockey Promo
(YouTube)

Is this the first official nod to the fact that there will be Big Ten hockey next year? No, but it kind of feels like it.

Best of the Rest

Scheid making most of return to Lincoln Stars
(Lincoln Journal-Star)

This story was worth dropping here, where it will presumably get more attention than in Commit Cycle, which generates about 30 pageviews each time out (seriously... and it's easily the most time-consuming thing I do on a regular basis). So, PSU signee Eric Scheid, where did you consider going after leaving Alaska-Anchorage?

Scheid quickly received recruiting interest from several top college programs. Before committing to Penn State last month, he was choosing between Northeastern, Nebraska-Omaha, Penn State and Minnesota State-Mankato.

And, of course, there's the obligatory "why did you pick Penn State" quote:

Scheid visited State College, Pa., before committing to Penn State. He’ll be the first former Star to play there.

"I had it narrowed down to a few schools that were interested, and the Penn State campus was the one that really stuck out to me the most," he said. "It had everything I was looking for as the Big Ten atmosphere with all the sports and a lot of students. They offered the playing time I was looking for going right in, instead of having to sit."

Podcast: Gadowsky on Recruiting
(College Hockey Inc.)

Listen and appreciate.

AHA Possible Expansion: Rhode Island
(Excalibur Sports)

Thanks to recent rumors, there's been a renewed push to get NCAA hockey to URI, complete with a Twitter account. Here's a blog post looking at the possibility.

I happen to think that Rhody represents one of the more credible rumors out there, but Penn State was a pretty credible rumor for quite a while too. We shall see.

OSU (and possibly PSU as well) gets to duck Miami leading scorer Riley Barber this weekend.

2013 U.S. National Junior Team Roster Nears Completion
(USA Hockey)

From purely a Penn State perspective (disregarding general hockey interest, et cetera), there really isn't much reason to care about the World Junior Championships yet, beyond how it affects other teams. Good news: it does. Highly-regarded Miami forwards/NHL draft picks Sean Kuraly and Riley Barber will miss the Three Rivers Classic, as will Ohio State coach Mark Osiecki, due to their participation in the WJC.

Calling my shot right now: PSU gets revenge on Robert Morris, while the missing firepower for the RedHawks costs them against the Buckeyes. All-Big Ten championship.

2012 Great Northwest Showcase
(greatnorthwestshowcase.com)

Speaking of holiday tournaments, the one outside of Pittsburgh I'll be keeping my eye on is the Great Northwest Showcase in Burnaby, BC. It involves ACHA teams Arizona State and Oklahoma (both PSU opponents this year) as well as Simon Fraser, probably Canada's best non-varsity program and UBC, a CIS school that frequently plays exhibitions against NCAA teams - this year, the Thunderbirds went 1-1-1 against Air Force, Denver and Colorado College.

If you're not a fan of throwing teams at different levels and under different sanctioning organizations together to see what happens, I don't get you.



Penn State Hockey Jerseys
(YouTube)

Let it be known that there are hockey jerseys available at Lions Pride, the official PSU merchandise store of TYT.

The End Is Nigh
(Fear the Triangle)

Finally, shoutout to FTT - my go-to for all things UMass hockey and beer - which is shutting down at the end of the season, due largely to the life circumstances that inevitably catch us all at some point (there aren't a ton of unpaid bloggers who are over 30, with kids and a successful career if you haven't noticed).

Not to get too personal, but there was a lot in this post that resonated with me, in terms of the blog's backstory and having "that moment" when you fully realize your limitations (living in Ohio, I have realizations of a smaller magnitude quite frequently). I was fairly late in learning about FTT, but look forward to reading the rest of the way, especially since we have more in common than I realized.

UPDATED: Lost in the Flood

Josh Daley helped UW-Stevens Point to an upset of third-ranked UW-Eau Claire on December 1st.

UPDATED 12/23, 5:15 P.M.: The original version of this post did not include former Icer Dan Meiselman, now playing at NCAA Division III Connecticut College. Special thanks to Icers great Paul Daley for pointing out the omission.

Way back in the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 seasons, a favorite pastime of bored bloggers and their friends was guessing which Icers and Lady Icers would make the jump to the inaugural NCAA teams. There were consensus picks (Tommy Olczyk, Bryce Johnson, Nate Jensen, Taylor Holstrom and Justin Kirchhevel were generally stipulated on the men's side once they were on the team) and also plenty of disagreement. But regardless of the various player assessments thrown out there, everyone seemed to be on the same page in one significant way: there would be bloodshed. Probably lots of it, with only a tiny number of players moving up and many, many more being discarded.

It didn't really play out that way, at least not to the extent envisioned. A grand total of 35 players who played for the Icers or Lady Icers between the donation announcement and the opening of the NCAA era didn't make it to senior day as a member of the highest-level team at Penn State. There are 24 players on one of the NCAA teams who played for the Icers or Lady Icers. The nature of that reality depends heavily on perspective, but I don't think anyone on the outside expected anything close to a 40 percent keeper rate. A good number of tough conversations and hurt feelings along the way were inevitable, but I think both coaching staffs deserve to be commended on their handling of the transition from a numbers perspective.

In the interest of remembering the contributions of those 35 players who did not use up their eligibility due, at least in part, to the transition process (obviously, there are differing sets of individual circumstances in each case), let's put all of their names out there.

From 2010-2011 to 2011-2012

Men: Forwards Andrew Duval, Mike Broccolo, Joe Zitarelli and Alan Clark; defensemen Mac Winchester, Ryan Erbe and Kevin Miller; goaltender Dan Ivanir.

Women: Forwards Michelle Clarke and Lindsey Shuler.

From 2011-2012 to 2012-2013

Men: Forwards Tim Acker, Josh Daley and Dan Meiselman; defensemen Ryan Seibolt, Steve Edgeworth, Forrest Dell and Brandon Russo. Additionally, goaltender Tim Carr transferred from Penn State in the middle of the 2011-2012 season.

Women: Forwards Abbey Dufoe, Kirsten Evans, Katharine Gausseres, Denise Rohlik, Sydney Sherman, Carly Szyszko; defenders Lisa Frank, Paige Harrington, Julie Horn, Allie Rothman, Ashton Schaffer and goalies Katie Vaughan, Sarah Eisenhut and Mary Kate Tonetti. Forward Christina Hurle left the team right around the time Carr did on the men's side, with forwards Sam Summers and Alex Warren-Caldwell also appearing on the roster at the beginning of the season but not at the end.

So what became of them?

It might make this post a little anticlimactic, but the majority (19 of the 35) simply elected to retire - the word they like to use - and finish their Penn State degrees while still being invited to hockey parties. Not a bad way to go out.

Most of the remaining 16 are playing for PSU's ACHA Division 2 teams, the Ice Lions and the newly-formed Women's Ice Hockey Club. Since both teams receive regular coverage here and it would be at least partly redundant for me to talk about them in any great depth, I'll just list their stats so far this season.

First up, the women, who are 4-1-1 at winter break and ranked No. 5 in ACHA WD2.

No.	Name	GP	G	A	Pts.	PP	SH	PIM
14	Carly Szyszko	6	2	1	3	1	0	2
6	Mary Kate Tonetti	6	1	2	3	0	0	4
9	Ashton Schaffer	6	0	3	3	0	0	0
20	Allie Rothman	6	0	2	2	0	0	2
18	Alex Warren-Caldwell	2	0	0	0	0	0	0

No.	Name	GP	Rec.	Min.	GAA	SO	GA	Sht.	Svs.	Sv%
1	Katie Vaughan	5	3-1-1	238.17	0.86	1	4	98	94	0.959
31	Sarah Eisenhut	3	1-0-0	70.77	0.72	0	1	19	18	0.947

Now the men, who wrapped up their fall semester 13-4-1 (5-0-0 MACHA North) and ranked No. 4 in the Southeast Region of ACHA D2.

No.	Name	GP	G	A	Pts.	PP	SH	PIM
46	Joe Zitarelli	18	9	12	21	1	2	6
3	Brandon Russo	18	7	14	21	3	0	28
24	Mac Winchester	18	8	12	20	6	0	28
73	Mike Broccolo	18	6	13	19	1	0	4
77	Forrest Dell	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

A very limited number, just four to be precise, sought to continue their hockey careers away from Penn State. Here's an update on how they're doing.

Josh Daley

Forward // 6'2", 185 pounds
Pittsburgh, PA

At Penn State: Daley looked to be one of the stars of the 2011 recruiting class, but never really got consistent ice time during his season with the Icers, playing in just 11 games (and often as a spare forward). He scored twice in a season-opening 12-1 rout of Lebanon Valley on October 7th, 2011, but was rarely heard from after that, putting up just four points over the rest of the season. When he was left off of this season's NCAA roster, he elected to transfer to NCAA Division III Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

After Penn State: At UWSP this season, Daley has played in seven of 13 team games - although he's become a lineup regular of late by playing in the last six after participating just once in the first seven. He has a goal, two assists and ten penalty minutes in all, with the goal and one assist coming in the first period of an 8-0 rout of Wisconsin-Stout on December 7th. As a team, the Pointers are 7-5-1 (4-3-1 WIAC), with the undisputed season highlight coming on December 1st via a 4-3 overtime win against UW-Eau Claire, the third-ranked team in the nation.

Tim Carr

Goaltender // 5'10", 170 pounds
Pine Bush, NY

At Penn State: Along with Jake Friedman, Carr was considered one of the first two "NCAA" recruits, since the pair were the first to commit to play for PSU following the NCAA transition announcement - meaning, of course, that they were the first to come in specifically to take a shot at playing for the DI team. However, he quickly fell behind P.J. Musico and Matt Madrazo on the goaltending depth chart, and departed for NCAA DIII Western New England during the semester break of the 2011-2012 season. Carr played in just three games as an Icer - a 6-2 win at Rhode Island on October 28, 2011, a 9-0 blanking of Rutgers on December 3, 2011 and a 4-3 loss at Liberty on December 9, 2011.

After Penn State: At ECAC Northeast-leading WNE (4-1-0 conference record, part of a 6-5-0 overall mark), Carr has blossomed into a very solid goaltender and is one half of a 50-50 rotation the Golden Bears deploy, with Eric Sorenson picking up the remaining minutes. On the year, Carr is 4-2-0 with a 3.06 goals against average and a 0.915 save percentage. His save percentage ranks first among all ECAC Northeast goaltenders, while his goals against average is fourth. In Carr's two conference games so far, his numbers are even better: 1.50 and 0.958, both tops in the league. He was named the ECAC Northeast's goaltender of the week on November 20th after a 41-save effort in a 2-1 win over Salve Regina on November 17th.

Over the second half of last season after transferring, Carr posted a 2.49 goals against average in five starts and went 2-2-1 for a team that finished 14-12-1.

Tim Carr is now one of the DIII ECAC Northeast's best goaltenders at Western New England.

Paige Harrington

Defender // 5'11"
Mansfield, MA

At Penn State: Harrington was part of a huge 13-player freshman class for the Lady Icers last season, and unlike Daley and Carr, she was an every-game player at PSU, appearing in 26 contests. While the extremely well-liked and sturdy defender only scored one goal during the season, it was a spectacular end-to-end rush that stood up as the winner against Vermont on February 19th and helped clinch the ECWHL regular season championship. Despite those heroics, she was omitted from the inaugural NCAA women's roster and transferred back home to Massachusetts.

After Penn State: Now with ACHA Women's Division 1's UMass, a one-time ECWHL nemesis of the Lady Icers, Harrington has clicked to the tune of a goal and five assists in nine games. This time around, her goal was in defeat (5-4 at Liberty on November 9th), although Harrington hasn't done a ton of losing this season. UMass is ranked No. 7 in ACHA WD1, thanks to a 8-3-1 record that includes a pair of wins over the University of New England, a first-year NCAA DIII program. In the ACHA, UMass rallied from two goals down to tie No. 5 Northeastern 2-2 on November 30th. One week later, they beat No. 1 Rhode Island 2-0, with Harrington assisting on a shorthanded goal to open the scoring.

Dan Meiselman

Forward // 6'2", 205 pounds
Winnetka, IL

At Penn State: The big forward was part of the gigantic 2011 recruiting class, via the EJHL's Capital District Selects. In 14 games as an Icer in 2011-2012, he put up six goals and six assists. Two of those goals were the first scores in a 3-0 win at Oklahoma on January 7th that was pretty important to getting the season back on track after PSU lost two in a row (the Citizens Bank Park game against NCAA DIII Neumann and a shootout stunner against Central Oklahoma) to begin the spring semester. He also had a pair in a 13-2 rout of Rutgers on December 2, 2011, and goal-assist efforts in a win over West Virginia on January 20th and a loss at Delaware on November 18, 2011. Like Daley and Carr, Meiselman took the DIII route after missing on a shot at playing DI, winding up at Connecticut College.

After Penn State: At the New London, CT school, Meiselman has appeared in just one game this season, a 3-2 overtime loss at Williams on December 1st. The Camels, clearly suffering the effects of not having former women's player Jess Desorcie (who, of course, pulled a reverse Meiselman, going from CC to PSU) around anymore, are just 2-5-1 (1-4-1 NESCAC), although they did manage a road tie with 12th-ranked Middlebury on November 30th.

Three Stars: June 4-10

3. Brian Cooper Earns USHL Scholar-Athlete Award
(ushl.com)

Cooper, a Fargo Force d-man who is going to Nebraska-Omaha in the fall, beat out 2013 G Eamon McAdam for the award. Still:

Other nominations for the USHL Scholar-Athlete Award included...Waterloo Black Hawks goaltender Eamon McAdam (committed to Penn State University) who earned a 3.86 GPA at Waterloo West High School while completing Honors and Advanced Placement classes...

That's an okay GPA.

2. Commencement 2012: Senior Awards
(Williston Northampton Blog)

Sarah Wilkie was sick of hearing me gush about the academic cred of Jeanette Bateman, Kendra Rasmussen and Emily Laurenzi, so she went out and won this at her school's commencement:

The L. G. Treadway Citizenship Prize, established by Richard Treadway, Class of 1932, in honor of his father, is awarded to a senior who has been at the school for at least two years, has maintained a strong scholastic standing, and has given promise of future achievement. The chief qualities to be considered are personal integrity and contributions made to the best citizenship of the school.

1. @PSUMensHockey
(TwitPic)

Keeping track of arena construction just got a lot more fun. How much more fun? The picture at the top of the post was taken last Wednesday and chosen for the symbolism of it being the first piece up. Here's what it looked like by Sunday:

Basically, I'm starting to regret my decision to frame my masthead around pictures of the arena site. Hello unplanned trip to PSU on Friday.

Best of the Rest

PSU women to build key conference rivalries early
(Shooting for the Show)

Following a rather anticlimactic women's schedule release, SftS tossed out some thoughtful analysis and did some digging re: the coming "DI" jerseys.

Also worth noting is that there is no date for the program’s jerseys to be unveiled, according to Matt Caracappa, Penn State’s athletic director, athletic communications.

Overall the school has done a good job of getting word out about the D-I transition. Still, it’s curious that nothing is in the works for unveiling the jerseys.

@D1WomensHockey
(Twitter)

Related to the women's schedule, PennStateWomensHockey.com discovered that women's games will be free of charge this season. So get out there in large enough numbers to make them want to charge for 2013.

Sure, why not?

2012 Icer Open Registration Form
2012 Icer Open Sponsorship Info
(Google Documents)

The 23rd annual Icer Open (I guess it's still called that - cool) is coming up on August 19th. I'm assuming that you're not all poor and dusty like me.

Former Vermont forward Milo suing university
(USCHO)

Former Vermont forward Justin Milo is suing the university, claiming that after he was cut from the team in 2010, the decision deprived him of his scholarship, his reputation and a promising career.

As much as I want to chirp future opponent Vermont over this one, I can't. Instead, I'll put this out there: a goal-scoring forward who was 127th in the ECHL in goal scoring last season probably wasn't destined for the Hall of Fame but for UVM's cutting him. Athletic scholarships are renewable on a year-to-year basis at the school's discretion. And Milo, despite being reasonably productive most of the time, has played for a) three USHL teams in two years, b) two NCAA teams in four years (counting his year in residence after transferring from Cornell) and c) three ECHL teams in two years. Doesn't strike me as the type of guy who had a fantastic reputation to begin with, or that teams desperately want to keep around, for whatever reason.

@franklylisa / @Paigemawee
(Twitter)

Those left off of the women's (and men's) NCAA rosters have some tough decisions to make. It sounds like Paige Harrington, a freshman on defense for the Lady Icers last year, has made hers in favor of a school roughly two hours from her hometown of Mansfield, MA.

Notably, Harrington's goal to finish an end-to-end rush gave PSU a 3-0 lead on senior day against Vermont, and held up as the winner in the ECWHL-clinching victory. In all, she played in 21 games and registered two assists to go with that goal.

Joe Battista: Cutting Ties with Information Overload       
(statecollege.com)

So wait, is there something wrong with having text alerts on the Twitter accounts of PSU hockey newsmakers and Google Alerts on just about every possible search having to do with PSU hockey?

College Hockey America: Two steps forward, one step back
(She Shoots, She Scores)

A nice look at the CHA's revolving-door membership, although it's a little heavy on lamentations over Wayne State and Niagara, as opposed to optimism for the future of a league that, in terms of the programs it contains, has never been stronger. The conference now has five fully-committed members that I can say aren't going anywhere with a reasonable degree of confidence (I'm not entirely sure on Syracuse).

Also, Lindenwood came from the ACHA, not Division III. Yeah, I'm always going to point that error out.

Huntsville Pins Hopes on Upcoming WCHA Meeting
(College Hockey News)

Speaking of the CHA - pat yourself on the back if you picked that one up - we're in the heart meeting season. And that, of course, means Alabama-Huntsville is trying to get into a conference just as they are more or less every other season as well. The latest last, best hope: the WCHA, which apparently is set to give UAH some consideration...

...then again, maybe not. High drama.

@zinnerthewinner
(Twitter)

!!!ETATS NNEP...ERA EW .supmac ot teg ot deticxe si nniZ eitaK drawrof s'nemow namhserF

.drieW ".setats" rof hcnerF si sdrawkcab "etats" taht denrael tsuj I

A DI Diary

As some of you may know, I've spent most of the last couple weeks grinding through the all-time schedule and results for the men's program(s). Today, I'm happy to report that the hard part of the project is complete and that I believe I've put together the most complete historical score record of Penn State hockey in existence:

M Results/Season: 1909-present

I won't bore you with my methodology (it's on the page I just linked if you really, really need it), but I will share something that I believe is of general interest - PSU's all time record against current NCAA Division I programs.

The varsity team of the 1940s, as most of you probably already know, played three different teams presently competing at the DI level a total of four times. The fact that they were all road games should be about the least surprising thing ever to anyone familiar with that team.

2/5/1944 @ Cornell, L 1-8
2/26/1944 @ Army, L 3-18
1/18/1947 @ Colgate, L 0-14
2/12/1947 @ Army, L 3-12

The Icers also played Army twice, once in West Point, once in a tournament at Kent State (Army's records omit the first of these two as an exhibition):

11/21/1980 @ Army, L 4-6
3/6/1982 vs. Army (at Kent, OH), L 3-10

The Black Knights, of course, appear on the coming season's schedule, October 26th to be precise.

Alabama-Huntsville claims the first three club national titles ever, in 1982, 1983 and 1984. The Chargers beat PSU in the championship tournament en route to the first two, then three times in the regular season leading to the third.

Another team on this year's schedule is Alabama-Huntsville. The Chargers, much like Penn State, transitioned to NCAA status from a highly-successful club program. While the two have not met since UAH's permanent move to DI, from Huntsville's 1979 formation until their elevation to Division II in 1985, PSU-UAH games were season-defining tilts.

3/12/1982 vs. Alabama-Huntsville (at Boulder, CO), L 3-4
3/5/1983 vs. Alabama-Huntsville (at Huntsville, AL), L 3-4
11/18/1983 @ Alabama-Huntsville, L 3-6
11/19/1983 @ Alabama-Huntsville, L 3-4 (OT)
12/9/1983 vs. Alabama-Huntsville (at Johnstown, PA), L 3-9
12/10/1983 vs. Alabama-Huntsville (at Johnstown, PA), W 5-4
11/16/1984 @ Alabama-Huntsville, L 3-6
11/17/1984 @ Alabama-Huntsville, L 2-4

The first two games on that list took place at the U.S. National Collegiate Club Hockey Championships, and UAH went on to take the title in both 1982 and 1983. The Chargers also claim a 1984 title. Penn State does as well, a reality made possible by the existence of two separate national championship tournaments in 1984 (and 1985 as well). UAH and PSU did meet four times during the 1983-1984 regular season, with three of four meetings going to the boys in (lighter) blue. I'm not giving up our stake in 1984 though, don't worry.

Huntsville went on to become quite successful in DII, taking the 1996 and 1998 national championships. After the first of those, they handed the Icers their worst-ever loss (tied with a 15-0 defeat by Princeton's freshman team in their second year of existence).

10/25/1996 @ Alabama-Huntsville, L 0-15
10/26/1996 @ Alabama-Huntsville, L 1-3

Joe Battista's ninth game as Icers coach was against Holy Cross, a PSU opponent on December 7th and 8th this year.

11/21/1987 @ Holy Cross, L 1-7

One final team on the Nittany Lions' inaugural NCAA schedule is Robert Morris. During RMU's formative years, the Icers earned a split in two games. The win is PSU's only one against a current DI team that came while that team was competing in DI.

10/8/2005 @ Robert Morris, W 3-2
10/8/2006 @ Robert Morris, L 0-6

Legendary Notre Dame coach Lefty Smith - who now has his name on the rink at the new Compton Family Ice Arena - coached against PSU four times.

Notre Dame dropped from NCAA Division I to the non-varsity ranks for a single season, 1983-1984, before bumping back up for 1984-1985. The Irish played PSU twice in each of those years.

2/10/1984 vs. Notre Dame (at Johnstown, PA), T 4-4
2/11/1984 vs. Notre Dame (at Johnstown, PA), L 1-6
11/2/1984 @ Notre Dame, L 2-8
11/3/1984 @ Notre Dame, L 3-10

Northern Arizona was a DI program from 1981 until 1986. It's a little suspect that they would play in the club national championship during that time (the source of the one PSU-NAU meeting), but hey, they were a year away from having 17-year NHL vet Greg Adams on their roster, so whatever. Kent State was a frequent Icers opponent both before and after their DI run from 1986 through 1994, but the teams only met twice during KSU's varsity era. Findlay and Wayne State round out the collection of now-defunct DI-ers (of note: PSU split a pair of games with Findlay during their time in DII immediately before moving up).

3/14/1982 vs. Northern Arizona (at Boulder, CO), W 5-4 (OT)
2/13/1987 @ Kent State, L 2-9
2/14/1987 @ Kent State, L 2-8
11/26/1999 @ Findlay, L 2-6
11/27/1999 vs. Wayne State (at Findlay, OH), W 5-2

Finally, a one-off game with no obvious segue.

10/17/1993 @ Massachusetts, L 2-7

In all (and excluding the UAH games along with the first two Notre Dame games), the Icers were 3-10-0 against DI teams, with a goals for-goals against of 34-85, or 2.6-6.5 per game. Certainly not pretty, but then again, not terrible either, all things considered. I should point out that I've excluded Villanova from that record (and indeed this entire post until now). For what it's worth, the Icers were 6-1-1 with a 49-18 GF-GA against the Wildcats from 1982 through 1998, the span VU was listed as an NCAA Division I program. I think Nova was about as DI as I am a Pulitzer Prize candidate though.

Mercyhurst and Canisius are now Atlantic Hockey rivals, but in another day and another division, they often opposed the Icers.

Before I exit this post, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that some of PSU's most extensive history with current DI programs actually comes via Atlantic Hockey's Canisius and Mercyhurst. The Lakers were DIII from 1987 through 1992, then DII from 1992 through 2000, before finally hitting DI. The Golden Griffins were a DIII program from 1980 until 1998, then jumped straight to DI at that point.

11/14/1981 @ Canisius, L 4-8
1/16/1982 vs. Canisius, W 6-4
1/29/1983 vs. Canisius (at Annapolis, MD), W 7-4
2/22/1985 @ Canisius, L 6-12
11/7/1986 vs. Canisius (at Allegany, NY), L 3-5
11/4/1988 vs. Canisius (at Geneseo, NY), L 2-6
10/26/1991 @ Canisius, L 4-5
2/19/1995 @ Canisius, L 1-8

1/31/1988 vs. Mercyhurst (at Geneseo, NY), W 6-3
11/5/1988 vs. Mercyhurst, L 2-6
12/18/1988 vs. Mercyhurst, L 3-5
1/14/1989 vs. Mercyhurst, L 2-9
1/6/1995 @ Mercyhurst, L 4-5
1/7/1996 @ Mercyhurst, L 4-13

W: Penn State 3 vs. Massachusetts 2 / Penn State 1 vs. Rhode Island 4 (ECWHL Playoffs)

Saturday box score // Sunday box score

The ECWHL championships, both regular season and tournament, are decided on the ice. While some may argue that the ACHA qualifies as well through its annual national tournament, the Lady Icers' conference enjoys the following characteristics:

• Its membership is determined before the season.
• Every member knows and understands the requirements to win it.
• Those requirements are the same for each member team.

It sounds simple, but in that simplicity lies its beauty: win enough games and you're guaranteed to win the whole thing. We expect that reality from competitive sports, largely because real life offers plenty of ambiguity, slanted playing fields, and general unfairness. Life crept into sports and struck Penn State hard in the wee hours of February 16th, when the ACHA announced that through some inconsistent application of its stated national tournament selection criteria, Massachusetts will compete for the ACHA and Penn State will not.

It's not sports-rule airtight, but one life rule was subsequently applied by the Lady Icers: keep kicking through adversity and good things generally happen. The reaction served the team well though a sweep of Vermont February 18th and 19th that clinched the ECWHL regular season title with a 7-2-1 record. It also served them well through the league's tournament on Saturday and Sunday, beginning with Saturday's semifinal against that same Massachusetts team that unjustly holds the last bid to ACHAs.

Despite being shorthanded for 30 percent of the first period with no power play time, PSU outshot UMass 10-9. They almost escaped to the dressing room unscathed, but the Jaramillo sisters - the ACHA's answer to the Lamoureux sisters, I suppose - teamed up for the game's first goal. Raschelle from Chelsea made it 1-0 Massachusetts after 1, although more than anything, it made the Lady Icers' big scoring line mad. Jess Desorcie tied the game up just 18 seconds into the second, assisted by Taylor Gross. Desorcie then returned the favor by setting up Gross for a 2-1 PSU lead 5:17 after that.

Sarah Oteri, who scored three of the four UMass goals during a series between the teams February 10th and 11th, leveled things once again early in the third period. A problem for some, but only if you don't have Big Game Tess Weaver on your team. As she so often does, Weaver scored the decider on an assist from Gross with 4:36 remaining. It was Weaver's fourth game winner of the season, a number that also includes the triumph over NCAA Division I Sacred Heart and a win at then-top ranked Northeastern in January.

However life, and adversity, crept back into sports and hit the Lady Icers - hard - two more times. Senior captain Sara Chroman broke her ankle late in the second period of the game - an unfortunate conclusion to a great run as the epitome of "outstanding student-athlete." The uncertainty and injustice of life may be a theme of this post, but I still have every confidence that the real world will nevertheless treat Chroman extremely well. She's certainly earned it. Jess Desorcie, who scored 19 (!) goals this semester after coming over from NCAA Division III Connecticut College, also suffered her own ankle injury in the first period of the ECWHL championship game against Rhode Island and was lost for the duration. She, however, will be back, presumably in a key role on Penn State's inaugural NCAA team.

Without two vital players, the slim hopes of defeating a tough Rhode Island team were not realized, as the Lady Icers fell 4-1 to end the season 13-14-3-1 and 12-7-1-0 in the ACHA, along with the ECWHL regular season championship. There's really no point in reliving the final, but it's worth observing that the lone PSU goal was scored by Elizabeth Denis, the geoscience Ph.D. student and former Brown player, who jumped on the top line in Desorcie's place. She's a great story if you're not familiar, and while NCAA rules prohibit her from being a part of the varsity team next year, I hope to be able to follow her with the new incarnation of the women's club program.

For the time being though, it's on to an offseason that's sure to be full of intrigue. In 2012-2013, Penn State will dive headfirst into a College Hockey America that includes Mercyhurst, one of the nation's best programs, as well as quickly-rising Robert Morris and old ACHA rival Lindenwood. And from what I understand, both the CHA and NCAA championships are won on the ice (it doesn't get much more objective than PWR and autobids, does it?). I, for one, can't wait.

Outrage

Junior Lindsay Reihl could hardly be blamed for wanting to pop one of these between the teeth of ACHA voters - she's now been unjustly shut out of nationals for a second time in a row.

For a second consecutive year, the Lady Icers have been snubbed from the ACHA National Championship Tournament by the slimmest of margins and under dubious circumstances. Early Thursday morning, this season's fourth ranking was released, with the top eight teams given bids to nationals in Wooster, OH March 8-12. Those teams are: 1. Robert Morris (IL), 2. Michigan State, 3. Rhode Island, 4. Minnesota, 5. Liberty, 6. Michigan, 7. Northeastern and 8. Massachusetts. Penn State was the first team out, in the 9th position.

As you may recall, PSU was also one spot short of nationals last season after being ranked at 7th (hypothetically, in the tournament) in the second-to-last ranking. What happened in that situation?

Well, for one thing, the World University Games happened. The Lady Icers sent as much personnel over to Turkey as anyone - four players and a head coach. And not just any four players either, as both goaltenders, Heather Rossi and Katie Vaughan, were included in that group. And thanks in large part to the efforts of those two, forward Denise Rohlik, defender Lindsay Reihl and coach Mo Stroemel, the first-ever women's WUG team finished fourth. A pretty decent endorsement for the level of hockey played in the ACHA if you ask me, something for which every coach, player and fan in Women's D1 should be thankful.  

Meanwhile back home, the Lady Icers predictably struggled while a series of non-goalies took turns between the pipes. First, it was leading scorer Carly Szyszko helping PSU to a 5-1 win over California (PA). However after that, No. 2 Robert Morris (IL) and then-No. 3 Michigan State came calling, and the results weren't pretty. As those games progressed, Szyszko gave way to Julie Horn, who then gave way to Lindsey Shuler.

Essentially, Penn State was burned for sending two elite-level goalies over to Turkey and making the entire ACHA look good.

This season the circumstances may have been different, but the the injustice was the same. I firmly believe the Lady Icers were punished for their imminent departure from the ACHA and for the fact that said departure involved a large number of games against NCAA opposition (which I still maintain was a wise decision that will pay dividends down the road). Penn State's rank lagged all season relative to performance. At first, I thought that once the second semester rolled around and the team's ACHA workload increased that the poll would correct itself. I can sincerely say, however, that I saw the writing on the wall when the poll previous to this had the Lady Icers 11th (up just one spot) despite wins against Rhode Island, NCAA Division I Sacred Heart and top-ranked (at the time) Northeastern during the period considered.

Lest you think my rantings of coming from a place of bias, consider that on the ACHA's ranking page for Women's Division 1, five criteria are given for weighing teams. Just for fun, let's see how Penn State compares with Massachusetts, a team that made it to nationals by finishing one spot ahead of the Lady Icers.

1. Overall record. PSU's is 10-13-3-1 (W-L-T-OTL) while UMass's is 8-10-2-1. Using a system awarding two points for a win and one for a tie or overtime loss, UMass has a slightly better points percentage (.452 vs. .444).
2. Strength of schedule. Penn State played 11 games against NCAA Division I or III teams. End of conversation - and I think the difference is easily more than enough to wipe out the tiny difference in overall record.
3. Record vs. Ranked Teams (Top 5, Top 10). Using the third ranking (the one which would have informed the decisive fourth ranking), UMass has a 5-7-1-0 mark against the top five and a 6-9-1-1 record against the top ten. The Lady Icers were 4-6-0-0 against the top five and 5-6-1-0 against the top ten. Call this one a push since Massachusetts has a better top five record and PSU has a better top ten record.
4. Games with common opponents. There are three opponents shared by the two teams, each for the same number of games: Northeastern, Rhode Island (four games each) and Liberty (two games). UMass was 3-6-1-0 in those ten games, while PSU was 4-6-0-0. Score this one for the Lady Icers.
5. Women's Division 1 record. UMass: 8-10-2-1, PSU: 9-6-1-0. No complicated math needed.

So basically, PSU is 3-1-1 in those categories against a team in the show. I'll add criterion number six: Penn State beat and tied UMass in their only meetings of the season just last weekend. Their reward? Closing out the season with two home games Saturday and Sunday against a weak Vermont team, then in Boston on February 25th and 26th for the ECWHL tournament. Considering that the ECWHL includes nationals-bound Rhode Island, Northeastern and yes, UMass, victory there would be something to savor (with the added bonus of hopefully making the voters feel like the buffoons they are). Here's hoping the team sees it the same way, since last year's snub led to flatlining at the league playoffs.

There is one positive, I suppose. Soon enough, Penn State will be in a better place than the ACHA and its system of tournament bids via winks, handshakes and general cronyism. Good riddance.

Scoreboard Watching (Volume II, Part III)

The Lady Icers are presently ranked 11th and need to crack the top eight to make it to nationals, which will be held March 8th-12th in Wooster, OH. In order to evaluate their chances of doing so, here are the teams ranked 5th through 11th - the tournament bubble - with their schedules between the January 27th poll (the last one before nationals bids are handed out) and d-day on February 17th.

5. Liberty (14-9-1-0 ACHA, 152 poll points)

January 28th/29th at Penn State, L 1-5/W 3-2
February 2nd/3rd vs. Robert Morris (IL), W 2-1/L 1-2
February 4th/5th vs. Rhode Island, L 1-2/L 0-1
February 11th/12th vs. Raleigh Women's Team, results unavailable

While those last two games will probably remain unreported, they're not ACHA games and won't have too much impact on things. Despite recent stumbles (against top teams, it should be noted), the Flames are probably safe booking a hotel in Ohio.

6. Massachusetts (8-10-2-1 ACHA, 143 poll points)

January 27th/28th vs. Minnesota, L 1-3/L 0-5
January 30th at Northeastern, W 2-0
Feburary 10th/11th vs. Penn State, L 1-2/T 3-3

I'll put this out there: UMass is the most likely team to fall out and create an opening for the Lady Icers. While they do have wins over each of the current top five this season, they're the only team in this post with a losing ACHA record. And now, they have a loss and a tie against a team that would love to take their place in Wooster.

7. Minnesota (14-6-0-0 ACHA, 127 poll points)

January 27th/28th at Massachusetts, W 3-1/W 5-0
January 28th at Northeastern, W 5-2
January 29th at Rhode Island, L 3-4
February 4th/5th vs. Colorado, W 12-1/W 6-4
February 11th/12th vs. Wisconsin, L 1-4/W 4-2

For as much good as the Gophers have done in recent weeks, a clunky (and not even close) loss against a bad Wisconsin team might cost them dearly. Minnesota did bounce back to win the next day though, and it's hard to disregard their previous track record.

8. Michigan (15-9-2-1 ACHA, 104 poll points)

January 27th/28th vs. Michigan State, L 0-3/W 1-0
February 10th vs. Grand Valley State (CCWHA playoffs), W 5-2
February 10th vs. Western Michigan (CCWHA playoffs), W 7-1
February 11th vs. Robert Morris (IL) (CCWHA playoffs), L 0-2
February 11th vs. Michigan State (CCWHA playoffs), W 2-1
February 12th vs. Robert Morris (IL) (CCWHA playoffs), L 0-3

Michigan solidified their spot at nationals with a run to the CCWHA final that included an upset of no. 1 Michigan State. I'd be stunned if the Wolverines don't make it.

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9. Grand Valley State (14-13-3-0 ACHA, 97 poll points)

January 27th/28th vs. Colorado State, W 5-0/W 8-0
February 4th/5th at Michigan State, L 1-3/L 1-2
February 10th vs. Michigan (CCWHA playoffs), L 2-5
February 10th vs. Robert Morris (IL) (CCWHA playoffs), L 0-3
February 11th vs. Western Michigan (CCWHA playoffs), W 9-0

10. Ohio State (15-10-2-2 ACHA, 93 poll points)

January 28th/29th at Northern Michigan, W 7-1/W 4-0
February 4th/5th vs. Western Michigan, W 3-0/W 5-2
February 10th vs. Miami (CCWHA playoffs), W 5-2
February 10th vs. Northern Michigan (CCWHA playoffs), W 9-2
February 11th vs. Michigan State (CCWHA playoffs), L 3-4 (OT)
February 11th vs. Robert Morris (IL) (CCWHA playoffs), L 1-4

Taking GVSU and OSU together, I really think Penn State got what it needed out of the CCWHA tournament with respect to these two teams. The Lakers flamed out, and while the Buckeyes had a better run that included extending MSU to overtime, they still didn't come away with a quality win.

11. Penn State (9-6-1-0 ACHA, 83 poll points)

January 28th/29th vs. Liberty, W 5-1/L 2-3
February 3rd/4th at Northeastern, W 4-2/L 1-2
February 10th/11th at Massachusetts, W 2-1/T 3-3

I said last week that the Lady Icers needed a sweep. They didn't get that, but they did get the next best thing. Will it be enough? My head and my heart disagree on that answer; I'll leave it at that.

W: Penn State 2-3 at Massachusetts 1-3

Friday box score // Saturday box score

For nearly 45 minutes of Friday night's tilt, the story was goalies Katie Vaughan and Chelsea Corell of UMass. At that point though, as so often happens when trying to best Penn State's stellar sophomore, Corell blinked first. And last.

To the surprise of nobody who has been paying attention, it was Tess Weaver, Jess Desorcie and Taylor Gross doing the damage. It was Gross, with assists to her linemates, that punctured Corell first with 15:12 remaining. Considering how the game had gone to that point, a 1-0 result didn't seem out of the question. Five minutes later, Penn State took to the power play looking to put the game away.

It was there, though, that things took a turn. Massachusetts turned out to be the beneficiaries of their own penalty when Sarah Oteri beat Vaughan while shorthanded, the only blemish on her line against 40 saves. Desorcie negated that issue with 5:11 remaining - her 15th goal in just 11 games at Penn State - and the Lady Icers were victorious.

The next day's game didn't result in an ideal outcome. But it was the next best thing, as Penn State avoided losing on a weekend for the first time since November 4th and 5th against NCAA Division III Chatham. And, as you might expect, the team's trademark resiliency was readily apparent.

UMass struck first and second off of the sticks of Nicole Murphy and Oteri to take a 2-0 lead into the first intermission. By the next one though, the Lady Icers were tied again thanks to goals from Weaver and Gross, the latter of those coming with just 14 seconds remaining.

Oteri, though, scored her third goal of the weekend (one shorthanded, one on the power play, one even strength to reach three-fifths of a Mario Lemieux) early in the third to once again put PSU behind the eight-ball. This one, the even strength one, came within 1:50 of serving as a game winner. Desorcie, who buried a second result-deciding goal in two days at that point to force the draw, had other ideas.

Vaughan was once again a storyline on Saturday, turning aside 37 of 40. In all, she faced 81 shots in the two games and came away without a loss.

What's left now? The waiting, which is the hardest part according to Tom Petty. Votes for women's ranking number four, the one that determines the eight participants at the ACHA national championship tournament, are due on Wednesday. This means, of course, that Penn State's record for consideration is now complete. On balance, it's a pretty strong CV with a 5-4-1 ACHA record against the current no. 2, no. 4, no. 5 and no. 6 teams teams this semester. It sounds top-eight worthy to me. The team's ACHA record overall is 9-6-1.

Regardless of the Lady Icers' nationals fate, which should be known by the weekend, PSU will play two final home games on Saturday and Sunday against Vermont, followed by one final trip to Boston for the ECWHL playoffs on February 25th and 26th.

Scoreboard Watching (Volume II, Part II)

The Lady Icers are presently ranked 11th and need to crack the top eight to make it to nationals, which will be held March 8th-12th in Wooster, OH. In order to evaluate their chances of doing so, here are the teams ranked 5th through 11th - the tournament bubble - with their schedules between the January 27th poll (the last one before nationals bids are handed out) and d-day on February 17th.

5. Liberty (14-9-1-0 ACHA, 152 poll points)

January 28th/29th at Penn State, L 1-5/W 3-2
February 2nd/3rd vs. Robert Morris (IL), W 2-1/L 1-2
February 4th/5th vs. Rhode Island, L 1-2/L 0-1
February 11th/12th vs. Raleigh Women's Team

The Flames had a tough-luck weekend after an opening victory against Robert Morris, losing three games in the third period. The good news for LU is that they have more margin for error than anyone in this post. The bad news is that the teams below are tightly-packed enough to make them pay, even with the 1-3-0 weekend coming against the no. 2 and no. 3 teams.

6. Massachusetts (8-9-1-1 ACHA, 143 poll points)

January 27th/28th vs. Minnesota, L 1-3/L 0-5
January 30th at Northeastern, W 2-0
Feburary 10th/11th vs. Penn State

UMass, idle last week, is one team that might be helped by the Flames' stumble - although they'll need a strong performance against the Lady Icers to seal their bid.

7. Minnesota (13-5-0-0 ACHA, 127 poll points)

January 27th/28th at Massachusetts, W 3-1/W 5-0
January 28th at Northeastern, W 5-2
January 29th at Rhode Island, L 3-4
February 4th/5th vs. Colorado, W 12-1/W 6-4
February 11th/12th vs. Wisconsin

The Gophers took care of business against lowly Colorado and probably only need to avoid a major upset against Wisconsin to punch their ticket to Wooster.

8. Michigan (12-7-2-1 ACHA, 104 poll points)

January 27th/28th vs. Michigan State, L 0-3/W 1-0
February 10th/11th/12th at CCWHA playoffs

The Wolverines joined UMass in not playing last weekend. As the last team in right now, UM will look to strengthen their position in the upcoming league playoffs.

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9. Grand Valley State (13-11-3-0 ACHA, 97 poll points)

January 27th/28th vs. Colorado State, W 5-0/W 8-0
February 4th/5th at Michigan State, L 1-3/L 1-2
February 10th/11th/12th at CCWHA playoffs

In some positive news from a Penn State perspective, the Lakers were unable to upset top-ranked MSU. GVSU will now head to CCWHAs needing to impress in order to cross that line above them.

10. Ohio State (13-9-2-1 ACHA, 93 poll points)

January 28th/29th at Northern Michigan, W 7-1/W 4-0
February 4th/5th vs. Western Michigan, W 3-0/W 5-2
February 10th/11th/12th at CCWHA playoffs

While the Buckeyes are winning, they may end up being hurt by the caliber of their schedule down the stretch. Quite simply, there's nothing in their recent schedule that makes a compelling case for upward mobility.

11. Penn State (8-6-0-0 ACHA, 83 poll points)

January 28th/29th vs. Liberty, W 5-1/L 2-3
February 3rd/4th at Northeastern, W 4-2/L 1-2
February 10th/11th at Massachusetts

As well as the Lady Icers have played this semester, realistically they will have to take it up a click and pull off a weekend sweep to stay in contention. Additionally, poor showings by Michigan, Grand Valley State and Ohio State at the CCWHA playoffs will help. Those are the three teams that, along with UMass, are most likely to drop and create room for PSU.

Scoreboard Watching (Volume II, Part I)

Last season, when the Icers were struggling to make the ACHA National Tournament and to much some a little acclaim, I ran a series called Scoreboard Watching to monitor the performance of the teams near the tournament's cutoff. For this week and the two that follow, I'm bringing it back - except for the women.

The Lady Icers are presently ranked 11th and need to crack the top eight to make it to nationals, which will be held March 8th-12th in Wooster, OH. Similar to last year, I'll run down the recent results and upcoming schedule for each team on the tournament bubble. First, here are the top 11 from the January 27th poll, the last one released before nationals bids are handed out (there seems to be a large dropoff from no. 12 Miami on down, particularly in terms of poll votes, so they're "eliminated").

1. Michigan State - 196 points (8 first-place votes)
2. Rhode Island - 189 (3)
3. Robert Morris (IL) - 171 (4)
4. Northeastern - 167
5. Liberty - 152 (1)
6. Massachusetts - 143
7. Minnesota - 127
8. Michigan - 104
9. Grand Valley State - 97
10. Ohio State - 93
11. Penn State - 83

For purely subjective reasons - recent results, upcoming schedule, the general rigidity of ACHA polls, etc. - I'll declare the top four safe at this point. If upcoming games merit revisiting that, I will. But for now, here are 5th through 11th with their schedules between January 27th and d-day on February 17th.

5. Liberty (13-6-1-0 ACHA)

January 28th/29th at Penn State, L 1-5/W 3-2
February 2nd/3rd vs. Robert Morris (IL)
February 4th/5th vs. Rhode Island
February 11th/12th vs. Raleigh Women's Team

I hesitated to include the Flames, but then I saw that they're hosting a battle royale with Rhode Island and Robert Morris this weekend. Should they survive that reasonably intact, you probably won't see LU here next week.

6. Massachusetts (8-9-1-1 ACHA)

January 27th/28th vs. Minnesota, L 1-3/L 0-5
January 30th at Northeastern, W 2-0
Feburary 10th/11th vs. Penn State

UMass is in a bit of a precarious position with a losing ACHA record but notably, they've defeated every team in the top five this season. Realistically it will take being swept by the Lady Icers to make them sweat, but they have the luxury of a weekend off to watch the situation evolve.

7. Minnesota (10-5-0-0 ACHA)

January 27th/28th at Massachusetts, W 3-1/W 5-0
January 28th at Northeastern, result not available
January 29th at Rhode Island, L 3-4
February 4th/5th vs. Colorado
February 11th/12th vs. Wisconsin

Following a successful (regardless of the Northeastern score) trip to Boston last weekend, the Gophers have a soft landing with four games against the 14th and 13th ranked teams.

8. Michigan (12-7-2-1 ACHA)

January 27th/28th vs. Michigan State, L 0-3/W 1-0
February 10th/11th/12th at CCWHA playoffs

A win over the top-ranked Spartans strengthens Michigan's case, and they might get another crack at MSU in the league playoffs.

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9. Grand Valley State (13-9-3-0 ACHA)

January 27th/28th vs. Colorado State, W 5-0/W 8-0
February 4th/5th at Michigan State
February 10th/11th/12th at CCWHA playoffs

The Lakers are first in line, so to speak, of the teams trying to get in. As such, they'll need to make a splash, either against MSU or at CCWHAs. The teams behind GVSU would rather they flop in both outings.

10. Ohio State (11-9-2-1 ACHA)

January 28th/29th at Northern Michigan, W 7-1/W 4-0
February 4th/5th vs. Western Michigan
February 10th/11th/12th at CCWHA playoffs

Blowouts over NMU (or WMU, should they happen) are unlikely to improve the Buckeyes stock much, so a run at the conference tournament may prove their only shot.

11. Penn State (7-5-0-0 ACHA)

January 28th/29th vs. Liberty, W 5-1/L 2-3
February 3rd/4th at Northeastern
February 10th/11th at Massachusetts

The biggest problem PSU faces is that none of the higher-ranked teams are taking an obvious late-season nosedive - the top 11 contains a tremendous amount of parity and most teams are producing quality wins with regularity. A four-game winning streak starting now (and preferably, with some outside help) would obviously make the best case for the Lady Icers.