Three Stars: August 1-7

3. Hey Hockey Valley, Get Ready to 'Roar into the Future!'
(statecollege.com)

Joe Battista gets his pump on with glowing words about Guy Gadowsky, Josh Brandwene, the four assistants on their respective staffs, Bill Downey, the new men's hockey SID and pretty much anyone else he could fit into a column of reasonable length. He's thrilled to get to the future, and why shouldn't he be with the people we have around both programs?

Clearly though, Battista's not an avid reader. If this blog leaves one lasting contribution to Penn State hockey, let it be the torpedoing of the 1946 myth.

One more thing: here's a challenge. Find someone saying something bad about Gadowsky on the internet. I bet you can't, and that says a lot in this day and age. My Google Alert (which sends Google hits to my email and has certainly helped with a post or two) reads "Guy Gadowsky," not "Guy Gadowsky + rad + bodacious" and I have yet to see anything.

My, how things have changed since the early 90s.

The closest thing has been a Twitter argument where the other side believed Mark Johnson would've been a better hire. And it's not like the other side said anything bad about Gadowsky, so...doesn't count.

2. Q&A: Men's hockey coach ready to start // Hockey gift endows goaltender, names coach's office // Former Icer Brandwene picked to lead women's ice hockey
(Nittany Lion Club Newsletter)

Admittedly, I didn't get around to reading the summer issue of the NLC Newsletter until this week, so it came as a little bit of a shock when I found three topical articles contained within. They probably don't include much you haven't read before (particularly the last two, on the John and Karen Davis donation and the Josh Brandwene hire, which borrow heavily from the original press releases), but hey, let me know if you find something that covers tons of new ground in August.

1. 2011 season preview: Looking at the CHA (Part 1 of 2)
(examiner.com)

Part 2 was promised "tomorrow," and "tomorrow" was last Wednesday, so you'll just have to survive on Part 1 for now. Anyway, get to know (half of) our future women's conference a year earlier than you need to. You'll thank me later. And actually, it may come in handy before the 2012-2013 season, since the Lady Icers open this season's ambitious schedule September 23rd at Robert Morris.

Best of the Rest

Well-rounded forward chooses PSU
(Lions 247)

Your money quote, from subject of the article Kenny Brooks:

“At first we’re all going to be young guys, so we all are going to have to work hard. But by the time I leave, I expect us to be competing with all of the top schools in the Big Ten and nationally as well. Hopefully we will be from the start, you can never really tell, and with the great coaching staff in place you never know what they can do.”

Winter Classic week full of possibilities
(Camden Courier-Post)

Fresh non-committal words concerning the in-negotiation outdoor game January 4th against NCAA Division III Neumann University, summarized nicely by:

Flyers president Peter Luukko, the driving force behind Philadelphia's bid for the Winter Classic, confirmed Tuesday night that games featuring the American Hockey League's Adirondack Phantoms and Penn State University men's hockey team are in the works.

"Those are both very good possibilities,' " Luukko said, adding, "There is a cost associated with keeping (the rink) up a couple days."

I'm equally excited for the idea of Holland Oates performing at the Winter Classic. As long as Peter Gabriel is there too (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia reference).

Compton Family Ice Arena
(und.com)

Notre Dame's page containing all things related to their in-progress facility. Including a live look at the construction. Not bad, guys.

Huskies add to coaching staff
(St. Cloud Times)

Another week, another unemployed former Head Coach Candidate finds work. This time, it's former Wayne State women's boss Jim Fetter, who rudely had his program cancelled out from under him in May.

CCHA, WCHA talk merger
(Bowling Green Sentinel-Tribune)

Remember that thing everyone assumed wouldn't happen? Yeah, well it might.

Even with this news, it's still pretty easy to see the finish line:

• Notre Dame will pick a conference - most likely the NCHC or Hockey East - by August 15th (reinforced in the article). Western Michigan will beg to be allowed to join, citing the Andy Murray hire and undoubtedly a Powerpoint presentation.
• The CCHA and WCHA schools not locked into the Big Ten, the NCHC or wherever ND and WMU go will merge into one conference.
• Or they won't. The WCHA, which has already poached Northern Michigan from the CCHA and is eyeing Alaska as well, would be good to go with at least six teams, possibly adding potential new program Minnesota State-Moorhead later, should MSUM get paid.
• The CCHA would need to add the Four for 18 club (Mercyhurst, Canisius, Niagara, Robert Morris) from Atlantic Hockey to survive without a merger. Yeah, I just made that up. Fear me.
• In non-merger scenario, AHA would still have eight teams and wouldn't need to do anything.
• Alabama-Huntsville remains completely screwed.

Versus Nears Deal to Televise College Hockey
(College Hockey News)

Apparently, Western Michigan is the only entity waiting on Notre Dame.

The Versus package will not be a national deal, per se. It was not negotiated with College Hockey Inc. or the Hockey Commissioners Association. That is impossible given all of the deals conferences have separate Regional Sports Networks (RSNs) and teams have with other local channels.

But Versus is intending to reach agreement with all five current Division I leagues to air games on Friday or Saturday nights. Some of those deals have already been finalized. Versus is expected to make an announcement of its broadcast package once all of the deals have been completed.

Oh Pegula
(sabrenoise.com)

Yes, someone really wrote a poem about Terry Pegula. I didn't make it very far before I got embarrassed for the guy (the author, not Pegula) and stopped.

Who's the loser in the middle not wearing a cartoon animal costume?

Rescheduling of 'Furry' convention in Pittsburgh points to Penguins hosting 2012 NHL Draft
(The Hockey News)

THN's Ryan Kennedy observed that the rescheduling of an event at Pittsburgh's convention center might mean that the 2012 NHL Entry Draft is coming to the Consol Energy Center. As exciting as the idea of the first Penn State draft pick possibly hearing his name called in Pennsylvania is, for now the more interesting story is what was moved.

The city required the use of its convention center, which had already been booked for June 21 to 24 by Anthrocon, an annual gathering of Furries.

"Furries?"

Anthrocon...is for people who enjoy dressing up in mascot-style costumes, emulating animals.

Oh, okay. Well, at least Anthrocon was bumped up instead of back. So your teddy bear collection is presumably safe from overanxious plushophiles (not that far of a reach, people).

2011 Junior Evaluation Camp Central
(usahockey.com)

I'm not going to go huge on the World Junior Championships until actual Penn Staters are involved. For now, the essential knowledge is that 28 current or committed college players are presently among the 44 total at the USA Hockey Junior Evaluation Camp as they attempt to make the USA U20 team for the 2012 WJC tournament - held December 26, 2011 through January 5, 2012. The Big Ten is represented by Jon Merrill (Michigan), Nick Bjugstad and Justin Holl (Minnesota) and Mike Mersch (Wisconsin). Also of note: PSU coaching finalist Scott Sandelin is an assistant on the WJC team. Follow along with the camp and related exhibition games (all of which runs through the 13th) at the link.

Breakout Past: Pozniak Lion Puck

The logo on this puck, for those who don't know, is referred to as the Pozniak Lion, after creator Ray Pozniak. The straight-on depiction of the Nittany Lion Shrine's head was trademarked in 1974 and in short order became a primary Penn State logo. However, on the back of Penn State's 1982 football national championship, a different logo (the more familiar "chipmunk") was commissioned. The Pozniak Lion - and a handful of other well-received insignia from that time - was phased out from that point, although it remains in use by the Lion Ambassadors student alumni corps and those who want to make a few bucks off a pretty sick logo.

Accordingly, and even though the Icers weren't necessarily on the same branding schedule as the rest of the university, it seems fairly obvious that this puck dates to the late 1970s or early 1980s, a fact confirmed by Mark Horgas, the guy who coached the team in 1979-1980 and played just before that.

It would be pretty lame of me to end the post here, so let's talk a little about that 1979-1980 Icers team. First, here's a season summary from the 2004-2005 program, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of that season.

The 1979-80 version of the Icers featured a veteran team that overcame adversity. They practiced on a temporary outdoor rink and played "home" games as the Cumberland Skatium [in Mechanicsburg] while the current Ice Pavilion was under construction. New coach Mark Horgas had five returning MACHC All-Stars including Rodger Furse, Jamie Hettema, Thom Horgas, Greg Smith and [then] current Icer head coach Joe Battista. The 18-5-0 Icers had a rocky start splitting their first four games with wins at Navy and at home against Drexel and losses versus West Chester and Villanova. Following the home loss to the Wildcats the Icers reeled off six straight victories including a 6-3 win at Villanova. Although they lost the next day 5-3 at Penn the Icers put together an eight game winning streak after than including a 5-3 "home" win against Villanova.

The Icers entered the MACHC Playoffs at [14-5] and were the MACHC regular season champions. They drew West Chester, a team they had defeated twice in the regular season. Jim Pollock played a magnificent game holding the Golden Rams to only one goal while the Lions notched seven of their own including a goal with two assists from Joe Battista. This propelled them into the best-of-three championship series against Villanova.

Playing the first game in Villanova, the Icers also faced a rowdy crowd. Energized by the crowd Penn State dropped the first game of the series 6-3 and perhaps more significantly lost leading scorer Thom Horgas to a knee injury and Dean Petracca to a shoulder injury. On top of this defenseman Joe Battista competed in the championship series with a cast to protect his broken wrist. The Icers regrouped and beat Villanova the following day 4-3 in overtime at "home." The Icers opened the scoring in the first period with a goal by Glenn DeStefano. Matt Glass followed with the second Icer goal and Greg Warren scored the third goal, sending the game into overtime. Led by goalie Jim Pollock's 23 saves and a game winning tally by Joe Grainda the Icers pulled even in the championship series. The season then came down to the third and deciding game of the series also hosted by Penn State. Despite missing their leading scorer the Icers were a determined group as Rodger Furse, Joe Grainda, Greg Warren and Glenn DeStefano scored to lead the Icers to another closely fought victory by a score of 4-3 giving them the championship. This was the second consecutive Hannigan Memorial Cup for the team. Coach Mark Horgas accepted the Cup from former coach Clayton John during the awards ceremony following the game. State College native Jamie Hettema was selected the MVP of the playoff.

Reminder: I didn't write that. Feel free to add the commas and paragraph breaks on your own that ethics prohibit from me.

In an instance of history repeating itself in both directions, the Icers' rivals in the MACHC (other than archnemesis Villanova) were Drexel, West Chester and Delaware in sort of a 30-years-ahead-of-its-time look at the ESCHL. PSU was 9-2-0 against the conference that year to win the regular season title for the fourth consecutive time, including 8-0-0 after December 8th. The non-con was highlighted by that loss to Pennsylvania, which had just dropped their DI program in 1978 and still featured many of their varsity players (incidentally, the man who swung the axe on the UPenn program was Andy Geiger, better known as Ohio State's AD from 1994-2005).

On the other side, there was a reprisal of that century-old tradition of not playing games on campus. The reason for the whole Mechanicsburg situation was the re-purposing of the original Ice Pavilion for an indoor football facility, which caused a two-and-a-half season homeless period while fundraising for and construction of the current Ice Pavilion took place. I don't think that the 2004-2005 program excerpt contained a strong enough expression of the adversity that team faced, so I'll toss in an old Collegian article from March 20, 1980 for good measure to close this post (which includes some prophetic words from Coach Horgas).

Yes, it's that Ron Musselman.

A Word of Thanks

July is in the books, and it had something in common with each of the nine months preceding it: this blog increased its number of pageviews. Not by a little, either. The total of the relative hockey wasteland of July was more double that of February, a month in the heart of hockey season that saw some vital games for the Icers (along with the World University Games).

I don't mean that as bragging - okay, I do a little - but more as a reason to drop a quick post in to thank each of you for your continued support. When I started doing this, I never expected anyone to read it, it was meant simply as a hobby to fill all the internet time I no longer spend on Penn State message boards (seriously, quitting message boards was one of the best decisions I've ever made) and to ensure that I stayed in tune to the building of Penn State's NCAA hockey programs. Accordingly, I put very little effort into "marketing," so the fact that it's grown to where it has really blows my mind. It's because of all of you that I'm able to say that.

A lot of that probably sounds disingenuous, so I apologize if it comes off that way. But somewhere in this post, I hope you recognize that I'm truly honored that you continue to take a couple minutes to come here and see what's new with Penn State hockey and/or what I have to say about it.

Special thanks are in order to my wife Jennifer, who reads every post before it goes up (except, ironically, this one) to ensure that it doesn't read like the Nightman lyrics. She also has complete editorial control of TYT's Facebook page, so be sure to head over there if you want something a little more thoughtful than the TYT Twitter account.

A pre-Jennifer TYT post.

I also want to extend my gratitude to the PSU blogging community, which has treated me extraordinarily well throughout my run despite my relative newness and fairly narrow scope. I don't know how you guys stay so plugged in to every sport at our school when doing only one/two nearly makes my head explode, but as a regular reader of all of you, it's appreciated. My ability to follow other sports is probably hurt by TYT, but because of you, not by that much.

To those of you there from the beginning, or close to it, I'm glad to have shared the journey with you. And to those a little newer to the readership, welcome, and hope you enjoy. As always, get at me through Twitter, email (kkr112 [at] hotmail [dot] com) or in the comments to any post with any issues, questions, or just to chat, and I promise a reply.

This season promises to be truly unique in the annals of Penn State history, and I'm anxious to get it going and to roll out some of the things I have planned for you. Only 65 days until the puck drops!

Three Stars: July 25-31

3. New Penn State hockey program lures Mercyhurst's Holstrom, Jensen
(goerie.com)

Penn State last played Mercyhurst's varsity (then in Division II) in January of 1996, and the Lakers won 13-4. I suppose we can now call it even. Although I'm not yet ready to wash away the 1989 Nittany Lion Invitational - that one will cost a couple more players.

"It's terrible. We were totally blindsided by this," [coach Rick] Gotkin told collegehockeynews.com.

It's not quite as terrible from where I sit.

2. 2011-12 USHL Regular Season Schedule Announced
(ushl.com)

As of right now, Mark Yanis (Muskegon), Kenny Brooks (Tri-City), Connor Varley (Des Moines) and Eamon McAdam (Waterloo) are the PSU recruits who will be playing in the USHL this season, with surely more to follow.

1. Penn State Men's Hockey Update
(YouTube)

What else?

PS. Is it me, or does YouTube always manage to find the least flattering frame of the video to display?

Best of the Rest

Lions land key transfer
(Lions 247)

Notably, Taylor Holstrom joins Nate Jensen in his criticism of Mercyhurst on his way out the door.

“Playing at Mercyhurst really wasn’t what I expected going into a college program. Don’t get me wrong, it was fun, the hockey was good, but the environment wasn’t what I expected. The fan base, the school, it all just didn’t mesh well with what I was looking for.”

Here's what Jensen said:

“I wanted to go to a school that was bigger with more of a tradition in sports, more support for the athletic teams."

I think this may be the best of the Andrew Dzurita recruiting articles to date, yet I relegated it to also-ran status. Why? Basically, I had an extra Holstrom picture I wanted to use (yes, that's completely true).

Wait, what's that Coach Gotkin?



Lions nab local goalie
(Lions 247)

Eamon McAdam is going to be a personal favorite if he keeps giving interviews like this.

NCAA has to fight perceptions
(undhockey.areavoices.com)

It didn't take me too long to figure out that Brad Elliott Schlossman is one of the best writers out there, and this effort doesn't disappoint. I feel like the college side of the NCAA vs. CHL debate tends to be more diplomatic in their arguments, along the lines of "there are pros and cons to both routes, it depends on the player," versus the CHL's "college hockey is a joke." Since the effectiveness of that technique is debatable, it's nice to see someone fire a couple of pointed shots back at major junior generally, and the Plymouth Whalers specifically (the piece was in response to North Dakota recruit J.T. Miller's defection to Pete Karmanos' half-assed tribute to the NHL franchise he ruined).

Schlossman also alludes to the coming TV deals for college hockey. Put that together with continued growth in the U.S. (remember, thanks to the large population disparity, Canada needs to "like" hockey ten times more to keep things equal), and it's not hard to see how things could look up for NCAA hockey in the future. It certainly can't get too much worse than the usual offseason northbound march of top players we see today, highlighted this week by John Gibson (Michigan to Kitchener), Jamie Oleksiak (Northeastern to Saginaw) and Connor Murphy (Miami to Sarnia).

@JVReemer21
(Twitter)

John Gaudreau is a hot commodity, apparently enough so that former UNH player James van Riemsdyk is willing to risk an NCAA violation for his school.

No decisions made after CCHA meeting with Atlantic Hockey schools
(USCHO)

We got a nice little break from the conference madness this week, just some more talk. First up, according to USCHO sources:

The CCHA has given its remaining schools a Sept. 30 deadline to declare their intention to leave the conference in 2013, a source told USCHO.

The four Atlantic Hockey schools involved in Tuesday’s meeting will reassess the makeup of the CCHA after Sept. 30 before making decisions on whether to join the league, the source said.

WMU hockey program may have a new conference within weeks
(Kalamazoo Gazette)

Western Michigan thinks that Notre Dame will decide on its future conference affiliation in the first two weeks of August. That comes off a little like me talking about what Without a Peer - a fantastic RPI blog, by the way - is going to post in a couple weeks, but there you go. WMU, in the meantime, will prove that they're a major program by waiting around, then going (or at least asking nicely) wherever the Irish say they should. Wait, what?

Also, memo to athletic director Kathy Beauregard: floral prints are not your friend.

WCHA leader set to visit Nanooks’ den
(newsminer.com)

Continuing the theme of nothing happening, WCHA commissioner Bruce McLeod is going to visit Fairbanks at some poi...zzzzzzz....

Wake me up if Nanook breaks in and eats McLeod.

Former PU Hockey Star Sproat Retires From Pros, Earning Service Award on the Way to Grad School
(Town Topics)

Hagel Heading to St. Louis Blues Organization As PU Hockey Alum Fights for Spot in NHL
(Town Topics)

Updates on a couple of former Princeton players, one (Dustin Sproat) leaving the game on his terms and one (Kyle Hagel) looking to break into the NHL and break faces on behalf of the St. Louis Blues. Both of them had some nice words about their former coach.

Hagel:

“Guy was absolutely outstanding. His charisma, his grit and his determination to win was just outstanding. We started together since we had the same freshman year. He never doubted us and he never doubted himself.”

Sproat:

“Things changed in that first year [Gadowsky was coach]. We didn’t win a ton of games, but you could just tell the whole atmosphere was changing. I left there knowing something awesome was going to take place at Princeton with Guy Gadowsky around.”

Alabama-Huntsville hockey program seeks funds; AD says search for a Division I conference continues
(al.com)

It sounds like things are getting pretty bad for DI's only independent, to the point where Chargers legend Jared Ross is sending dire-sounding e-mails to program boosters.

To break it down fairly short, the University of Alabama Systems is currently dealing with major budget cuts on the Huntsville campus and are very seriously looking at the possibility of completely demolishing Charger Hockey...what we are asking for are pledges. Basically, we need to raise as much money as possible to be able to present this to the UA Systems.

Adding to the apparent financial issues is the fact that UAH hasn't even been rumored to be a serious candidate for any of the conferences looking to add teams - their lack of a league is the problem that started all of this - which was my fear throughout. They were too much of a geographic outlier for the CCHA when the conference had the muscle of Michigan, Ohio State, Michigan State, Notre Dame and Miami. Why would that have changed now, when smaller-budget schools are the new reality? Like I've said before, Huntsville needs a league whose very survival depends on their membership, or they might not find one at all.

Carvel Named Assistant Men's Hockey Coach
(stlawu.edu)

The former Head Coach Candidate landed on his feet at his alma mater after being fired by the Ottawa Senators.

Sens' new scoreboard not a done deal
(Ottawa Sun)

Anthony James Partners, the company behind the Pegula Ice Arena scoreboard (as well as several others at PSU), gets busted for leaking a scoreboard that wasn't a done deal yet.

Terry Pegula is apparently unaware that DI programs are allowed to use rinks that look like this as their home ice. Shhhh....

Canisius, Niagara to meet with CCHA tomorrow
(It's Always Game Seven)

Linked mostly for its confirmation (through a statement released by Canisius AD Bill Maher) that The Namesake is working with the Griffs on a facility:

“We have had discussions with the Buffalo Sabres front office concerning a practice site for the Sabres on the Canisius campus, and we are very excited about the possibility of developing a partnership. The partnership being discussed would not only benefit the Sabres and our NCAA Division I hockey program, it would also have a significant impact on amateur hockey in Western New York. Canisius College is carefully studying this opportunity with the goal of putting together a plan that benefits both organizations.”

Who are we doing this Versus?

College hockey will never be broadcast on Versus.

That doesn't exactly mean what you think. I'll put it to Michael McCarthy of USA Today to explain.

So much for the Versus name in TV sports.

Comcast's NBC Sports Group will announce Monday that it's jettisoning the Versus moniker and changing the name of the cable channel to NBC Sports Network. The makeover, including a new peacock logo, takes effect Jan. 2.

"This is more than just a name change for Versus," NBC Sports Group boss Mark Lazarus said in a statement. "It's a complete repositioning of the brand."

The national sports channel did a nice job on the NHL. But some hockey viewers complain, rightly or wrongly, they have trouble finding it on their cable box. Plus, Versus never developed into the legitimate, national rival to ESPN that many sports viewers had hoped.

The move was expected. Versus no longer has its own website.

Sports fans are far more familiar with NBC Sports, which televises everything from Super Bowls to Olympics. The move also allows NBC/Comcast (which recently beat back competing bids from ESPN and Fox Sports to retain Olympic rights through 2020) to put almost all of its Olympic coverage under the peacock logo.

The channel, originally launched as Outdoor Life Network in 1995, changed its name to Versus in 2006 in an effort to push into the mainstream sports marketplace. This latest name change, of course, may come with some added programming towards that end. In addition to the Olympics and the NHL, the channel to be known as NBC Sports may find itself in the college hockey business sooner, rather than later. Let's go back to what Ken Schott of the Schenectady Daily Gazette reported on July 22nd.

There could be a national college hockey package coming to Versus this season.

Numerous sources have indicated that Versus is discussing the possibility of televising regular-season college hockey games, beginning in January. What conferences would be involved, or what night the games would be shown (either Friday or Saturday) is unclear right now. Versus, part of the NBC Sports Group, is the cable home of the NHL. A few months ago, the NBC Sports Group signed a 10-year deal to keep the NHL on NBC and Versus.

I've speculated all along that Versus/NBC Sports will get into bed with whichever conference Notre Dame ultimately calls home, and I still believe that to be the case. But it seems as if the possibility at least exists for a deal that is national in scope - obviously a boon for the Big Ten and Penn State if an occasional game of the week appearance on what will be NBC Sports supplements the slate of games on Big Ten Network. And of course, a national deal means that neither the NCHC nor Hockey East gets the entirety of the revenue pie, which would help cement the Big Ten's spot at the top of the conference food chain.

However it ultimately plays out, it's an exciting development as college hockey starts to hopefully move past the stage where you need $7 and a B2 link to watch a game.