Three Stars: September 30-October 6

Even PSU's Cooperall phase deserves to be remembered

3. Men's Hockey Media Day - Sights and Sounds
(GoPSUSports.com)

Much like with the women last week, I figured I could link 38 stories using the quotes given at last week's media day, or I could just give you the raw material.

PS. Is it just me, or is "sights and sounds" a really, really stupid label for something about a media day? Sights: People sitting behind a table and a microphone. Sounds: People talking. It's not a carnival.

2. Good Life: Q&A with Guy Gadowsky
(Centre Daily Times)

I've had sort of a mancrush on Guy Gadowsky ever since he revealed his music tastes to Pennsylvania Puck a while back, but I don't think I truly "got" him until recently. This interview, while good, doesn't break a ton of new ground - although this caught my attention:

We’re still very young and, obviously, competing against the programs in the Big Ten that we are, we’re not looking at expectations in terms of wins and losses. We certainly have very high expectations to continue to build on that foundation and areas that we can control.

Raise your hand if, the first time you heard him say something about laying and/or building on a foundation, you expected him to still be saying it heading into his third season at PSU. I didn't. But now, I don't really expect him to ever stop, which is something I can certainly appreciate. You could probably rephrase it as "take care of the little things and the big things (the wins and losses) take care of themselves," a line often attributed to one former Penn State coach.

1. How Penn State hockey got here
(Big Ten Network)

Finally. Someone who gets it with respect to PSU hockey history. His name is Jeremy Woo, and you can thank him by giving him a click and read.

For what it's worth, I did my part by a) linking it and b) arranging for this tribute.

Best of the Rest

Freshman goalie Eamon McAdam, during his first appearance in a full PSU uniform

A closer look at the players between the pipes for Penn State ice hockey in 2013-14
(Stack the Pads)

PennLive goalie expert Derek Meluzio gives his take on the men's crease situation, sure to be a major topic of discussion as the season gets underway.

Fans Flock To Pegula Ice Arena For Midnight Practice
(StateCollege.com)

A nice wrap up on the men's midnight practice Friday night/Saturday morning from Ben Jones, including a photo gallery.

Captain Practice A Unique Wrinkle As Season Approaches
(StateCollege.com)

Jones earned the rare double with a nice feature on how the team deals with the fact that the NCAA doesn't allow full practices until one week before most teams begin the regular season.

In move that alters landscape of college hockey, Pegula proud to unveil new era at Penn State
(Associated Press)

This one made it in more because it's an AP story that received heavy distribution than due to anything particularly fabulous about it, but I did like this quote near the end from Joe Battista:

“Someday, wouldn’t it be great to turn on the television and see Penn State play Alabama in ice hockey?”

Not if Nick Saban is allowed anywhere near that program.

PSU All-Sports Museum's Hockey Exhibit to Open Oct. 11
(GoPSUSports.com)

In last week's Three Stars, I shared a photo gallery of the new hockey exhibit at the All-Sports Museum. I thought it was open then, but apparently, it opens Friday.

Big Ten Network Makes Investment in College Hockey
(New York Times)

This one ought to get people talking:

If college hockey takes off on television, Minnesota Coach Don Lucia said he hoped two more Big Ten institutions might add the sport.

The Big Ten associate commissioner Jennifer Heppel, who oversees hockey, said she would not rule out adding associate members for hockey alone, as the conference did for Johns Hopkins in lacrosse, though not soon.

“It’s hard to predict the college landscape right now, especially Division I,” she said.

Nebraska-Omaha or UNO or Omaha or whatever they're calling themselves these days has always been tossed out as a possible Big Ten affiliate member, due to being part of the University of Nebraska system that also includes Big Ten member Nebraska-Lincoln. I suppose the same logic puts Minnesota-Duluth out there as well.

Freshman David Thompson is expected to play a big role on the Penn State blueline

Blueline depth bodes well for Penn State
(The Daily Collegian)

The Collegian is over halfway through a comprehensive and well-conceived ten-article season preview for the NCAA men. The first entry is linked above, and here are the others out so far:

B1G and Pegula will help lure recruits
Offense looks to improve with depth and experience
Potential NHL talent factor in to this season and future
Student Section looks to terrorize opposition
Penn State's nine most formidable foes
Penn State eyes underdog role with tough schedule

With the season already underway for many teams and about to be there for the rest, similar efforts are all the rage. Here are a few more...

Penn State Men’s Hockey Season Preview
(PSU ComMedia)

It really is pretty refreshing to see people finally treating the Nittany Lions like an actual hockey team and not just a... oh wow, Pegula Ice Arena is amazing, you guys. The Collegian's on board with that, as is ComRadio's Ross Insana, who checked in with his version of a men's preview.

Insana also wrote a column regarding PSU's size and physicality. We sure do have some big hombres on the squad, especially up front.

2013-2014 Big Ten Preview: Individual Awards
(Western College Hockey Blog)

WCHB - which still hasn't been re-named, despite its now-national scope - took a fairly predictable approach with respect to their guesses at Big Ten awards by largely ignoring PSU other than tossing the two recent NHL draft picks on the all-rookie team.

Penn State Season Preview
(USCHO)

Flipping over to the women, USCHO hit the Nittany Lions in their team-by-team previews and highlighted the fact that Penn State didn't really get run out of the rink by anyone in NCAA year one.

“The fact that we were there in those games, with so many close contests last year, to me was a very pay-it-forward type thing,” [Josh] Brandwene said. “We’re looking to get better defensively, we’re looking to get better offensively. We want to improve every day and build upon the opportunity we had last year to be competitive and then take it to the next level.”

Penn State Women’s Hockey: Season Preview
(Victory Bell Rings)

VBR's Mary Clarke (who did a phenomenal job tweeting the women's games over the weekend, make sure you're following her), had this to say:

Last year, Penn State surprised some people with their resilience and overall team tenacity. This year, look for the team to improve overall, with a few new additions to the forward core, a new face on the blue line, and a strong goaltending team in net. Keeping the opponent’s shots on goal to a minimum and increasing their own shots towards the net, in my opinion, will be a key to their success this season.

Also, she called me lovely, which made me feel pretty good about myself.

Blue Liner Notes: ACHA Teams Get Underway
(Black Shoe Diaries)

IcersGuy began his weekly rundown of UPark's four teams for the season with a look back at the opening series for the Women's Ice Hockey Club and the Ice Lions.

Robert Morris extends Colontino through 2016-17
(USCHO)

In an abbreviated "opponent news" section, RMU women's coach Paul Colontino received a two-year contract extension. Colontino is just beginning his third season and, in 2012, led the Colonials to the CHA playoff title.

Lofty goals for Robert Morris hockey this season
(Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

Over on the men's side, Derek Schooley's gang will come into the season motivated by their NCAA Tournament at-large bid near-miss last season. RMU was left out of the show despite wins over Quinnipiac (the eventual tournament runners-up who spent most of the season ranked number one) and in the Three Rivers Classic title game over perennial power Miami.

Welcome, Josh Healey!
(Deadly Nuts)

Deadly Nuts recently completed a series profiling Ohio State's freshman, and it's pretty fantastic. Possibly because other people care about annoying things like "copyright infringement" (sounds like a made up thing to me), both this post and the entire blog are illustrated with MS Paint cartoons. And I've said it before, but the writing is sort of what I was/wanted to be before I lost my edge sometime in 2011 and started writing dry recaps of other people's work once a week.

I picked Healey to link because he's from that PSU recruiting hotbed of Edmonton, AB and because he played with Dylan Richard for Canada West at last year's World Junior A Challenge.

Robert Pelletier vs Conor Garland Sep 22, 2013
(YouTube)

Once in a while, something reminds me that I never deleted my "Conor Garland" Google alert. Finally, this time around, I succumbed to my morbid curiosity. So I went to look up something about him that I could use here and found... a fight video. Didn't expect that. If you're hoping to see the diminutive Garland take a Boogaard vs. Fedoruk-level beatdown (admittedly, I was) you'll be disappointed, but he eats a high enough number of quality blows for me to keep it in.

Anyway, in a partial 2012-2013 season for the QMJHL's Moncton Wildcats (26 games), Garland had six goals and 17 points for a club that went 42-23-3 but was bounced in the first round of the playoffs. So far this year, Moncton is 4-6-0 with Garland's 11 points placing him third on the team in scoring. He's eligible for the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, but at 5'7", 170 pounds opinions on where he'll go are mixed, even with his ridiculous skill level.

Sophomore Jordin Pardoski and her teammates were wound up after beating Vermont

@JordinPardoski
(Twitter)

Jordin Pardoski, reporting from the bus on the way back from the tie-win weekend in Vermont:

This maaaaaay or maaaay not be the first bus ride where NO ONE is sleeping #WoundUp

Des Moines Snaps Up Greer in USHL Draft

A.J. Greer (black) is emerging as a highly-regarded power forward

A.J. Greer, a 2015-committed forward originally from Repentigny, Quebec, was selected in the fifth round, 66th overall, by the Des Moines Buccaneers in the USHL Draft, Phase 2, on Tuesday afternoon.

The USHL Draft, just as background for those unfamiliar, is divided into two phases. Phase 1, formerly known as the Futures Draft, includes only players who will qualify as under 17s for the coming season (so 1997 birth year players this time around) and was conducted on Monday. Phase 2, more or less, covers all other players eligible for junior hockey and whose rights are not already owned by a USHL team.

In his sophomore year at Kimball Union Academy in 2012-2013, Greer managed to stand out on a loaded team that included ten Division I commitments by finishing sixth in scoring with 16 goals and 19 assists in 30 games and receiving an all-scholastic underclass second team nod from Over The Boards.

KUA's campaign did not end on a high, though. After a 27-2-0 regular season and the top ranking in prep hockey for most of it, the Wildcats were stunned 4-1 by Gunnery in the quarterfinals of the Stuart/Corkery Tournament, the New England prep championships.

In 2011-2012, Greer played for College Esther-Blondin, helping the Phenix to the Quebec midget AAA championship and a silver medal at the Telus Cup, Canada's midget national championships.

Part of Greer's rising stock however, at least in this corner, was his thinly-veiled Twitter blast of Conor Garland, a former Penn State commit who elected to jump ship for the QMJHL's Moncton Wildcats back in December.

Kid's already one of my favorite players.

Penn State does have a bit of history with the Buccaneers, as soon-to-be-sophomore defenseman Connor Varley played for the team, as did incoming forward Zach Saar. Former Icer-turned-Ice Lion Mac Winchester played seven games for the Bucs in 2008-2009. Still, Des Moines' franchise is not in the best of shape - they finished seventh in the eight-team Western Conference this past season with a 25-35-4 record, which was actually improvement from their 2011-2012 mark of 20-33-7. That raises at least a question of whether Greer will report to Iowa at any point prior to attending Penn State two to three seasons from now.

Another notable pick took place just two slots before Greer, as Team Illinois' Nick Olczyk went 64th overall to the Sioux City Musketeers. Olczyk, as one might guess from the rather unique last name, is the younger brother of Penn State captain Tommy Olczyk and Eddie Olczyk, who just completed his senior season at Massachusetts. Both Tommy (205 games) and Eddie (71 games) played for Sioux City during their USHL careers.

Three Stars: February 25-March 3

3. 2013 Men's Division 2 National Championships
(achahockey.org)

Last Monday, with the ACHA D2 regional tournaments completed, the Ice Lions learned their Pool C rivals for the upcoming ACHA championship tournament - Marist (No. 1 in the Northeast Region), Illinois State (No. 3. in the Central Region) and Weber State (No. 4 in the West Region).

In true ACHA style, I can't tell you precisely when Penn State will play each of those teams just yet, although we do know that the games will be on March 15th, 16th and 17th at the Hardee's IcePlex in Chesterfield, MO. Should PSU win the group, they'll advance to the semifinals on the 18th against the Pool A winner (Grand Valley State, Arizona State, Northeastern, Maryland), then hopefully to the finals on the 19th.

2. Joe Battista: Thank you Greenberg Ice Pavilion! Next stop: Pegula Ice Arena!
(statecollege.com)

Joe Battista dropping Ice Pavilion memories? Yes, please.

1. Sowney sets record, with assist from linemate
(phillyburbs.com)

On February 21st, in a Commonwealth Campus season wrap-up post, I mentioned that Berks senior Sean Sowney became the fourth player in program history to hit the 100-point mark for his career. Well, take that one step further: Sowney finished with 111 points to end as Berks' all-time leading scorer, with the record-breaking point coming on the final shift of his career to cap a four-point night.

“It’s a great feeling knowing of all of the people who went to this school you are the only one to ever do this,” Sowney said. “The record may be broken but at the time when I left, I was the leading scorer.”

Following his high school career, Sowney attended Burlington County College for one year before attending Penn State. The year spent at the two-year institution consumed one year of Sowney’s athletic eligibility.

“I know if I had an extra year I could have put that record out of reach.” Sowney said.

Whether the record falls next season or not, Sowney’s living in the present.

“This is one of those achievements where you realize everything you you’ve done in your career, it’s all came together. It’s an awesome feeling.” Sowney said.

A great story, and certainly worthy of the lengthy write-up it received - as well as first-star status.

Best of the Rest

@Ben_Jones88
(Twitter)

The major story here is the pouring of the concrete that will sit underneath the Pegula Ice Arena's playing surface, but to be honest, I'm more impressed with the general aesthetic here. I mean, look at it - beyond the installation of the ice and seats, a couple (much) smaller things, and a bunch of stuff you can't see in the photo, that's your home arena. Not too bad.

RIT is a great addition to a new division
(USCHO)

Too soon? Yeah, probably. But nevertheless, it's a great in-depth look at the Tigers and what has to be called a highly-successful first DI season in Henrietta, NY - I watched RIT's first DI game against Mercyhurst on September 28th where they went down 2-0 18 seconds in, and I've seen their most recent work, against Penn State of course. Not really much of a comparison. Tons of credit is due head coach Scott McDonald, his staff, and a group of senior leaders with that championship mentality for their getting up to speed quickly.

On rare occasions, Laura Bowman has to open her mouth to communicate with Amy Petersen

History is rewritten in Tonka three-peat
(Chanhassen Villager)

Here's one more look at the third consecutive Minnesota title won by Laura Bowman and Amy Petersen - soon to be called incoming PSU freshmen - and their teammates. If you hadn't already figured it out, it looks like we're in for some freaky Sedin twin-like ESP stuff with the best friends. This passage concerns Bowman's clinching goal in the state championship game:

Petersen and Bowman put the game away at the 3:04 mark of the final period. Carrying the puck into the offensive zone on a 2-on-1, Bowman slowed the play, passing across to Petersen, who returned the favor for a tap-in goal for Bowman.

"Amy and I have played together for 11 years and we just have amazing chemistry. I was impressed with our play," laughed Bowman, who added three assists in the tournament. "We were talking about how pretty it was when we were screaming. We knew it was pretty."

Conor Garland - Moncton Wildcats (2014 Eligible)
(hfboards.com)

Since bailing on his Penn State commitment for the defense-optional QMJHL, Conor Garland has done fairly well, with 17 points in 19 games. And he's starting to generate some buzz ahead of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft in spite of his elfin stature. No, I don't really care, and you probably shouldn't either, but I guess it's sort of my job to point things like this out, and I neglected to delete his Google Alert, so...

@Rob_Gsinger25
(Twitter)

Depressing? Hilarious? Awesome? Guess that sort of depends on your favorite sport and your outlook on life. Personally, I don't think it's a violation of #OneTeaminess to acknowledge that Penn State men's basketball hasn't been a highly-successful program, for the most part, and will often be on the ouch side of oddities like this. And hockey winning at Wisconsin in year one of the NCAA era was awesome. So that's where I am with it.

Notebook: Penn State no patsy in becoming Gophers' newest hockey rival
(1500espn.com)

While on the surface, this article is no different from the glut of shallow pieces generated by Guy Gadowsky's end-of-season press conference - new arena coming, surprisingly good team, everyone's happy and excited, if you missed them -respect coming from Minnesota is a little different.

Coached by Guy Gadowsky, who produced success first at Alaska and then at Princeton before landing the coveted job in State College, the Lions finished the season with a respectable 13-14-0 record, which included wins over Michigan State, Ohio State and the Badgers.

It also included a bewildering loss to Arizona State's club team, but such are the growing pains to be expected in a hockey program that had zero seniors and was started from scratch two years ago.

Gadowsky took a few players off the Lions' club team, recruited heavily in the growing hockey communities in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, and got a few transfers, including ex-Gopher Max Gardiner, from Minnetonka.

"It wasn't like they were starting a new program. They had a nucleus of players on campus, and they were able to get some transfers in which helps when you're building your program," Gophers coach Don Lucia said. "I think they're going to walk in in a good spot. They had a good year this year, and obviously, it was a big win (at Wisconsin)."

"Started from scratch?" Kind of a baffling way to put it, especially given that it's almost immediately contradicted by Don Lucia. I've written about it before, but you simply can't separate the Icers from what happened this season, end of story. I'll take it a step further and say that the loss to Arizona State was less about "growing pains" and more about the quality of the ACHA that helped launch PSU's NCAA program (certainly, both played some role - ASU wouldn't be able to do that to a Boston College).

Yep, I'm playing ACHA hero again. Someone at Penn State has to do it.

Three Stars: December 3-9

3. Hockey Hero Mike Eruzione to Speak at Penn State
(Onward State)

It's pretty well known by this point, but Eruzione was giving the famous 2010 Penn State arena tour delegation a look at Boston University's facilities when Joe Battista received the text from Terry Pegula confirming that he had made his donation official. Kind of disappointed that Onward State missed on that little tie-in.

2. California “Gilmour Girls” Bring Unique Background to Nittany Lions
(ComMedia)

Ross Insana comes in hot with a great feature on Caliswag-certified women's freshmen Celine Whitlinger and Micayla Catanzariti. The pair, of course, went to prep school at Gilmour Academy, which is about 15 minutes from my hometown of Solon, OH, so bonus points for that.

1. Pegula Ice Arena Season Ticket Deposits to be Accepted Beginning Friday
(gopsusports.com)

There's a lot of information here to digest, and in a perfect world, I would have tackled this in a separate post when it happened, but since it's not a perfect world....

Penn State began accepting deposits for men's season tickets next year at the Pegula Ice Arena on Friday, so you might want to get on that by calling 1-800-NITTANY or stopping by the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office. The deposit is $25 per seat, and no commitment to a specific type of seat is required yet. The deposit period will run through April, after which those making deposits will be prioritized based on Nittany Lion Club points and status as a current season ticket holder (it's not disclosed how those two things weigh against each other) and given a seat selection time. Beginning next June, those seeking tickets will then begin to grab specific seats, at the following prices (the color coding corresponds to the seating chart above, in case that wasn't completely obvious):

The prices and minimum donation of $50 per seat (for season tickets) are interesting, because:

1. It's not at all out of line with what people pay at major hockey schools.
2. It's still about double what people have been paying, even this year with NCAA hockey.
3. At the cheaper prices, Penn State has successfully filled the 1,300-seat Ice Pavilion, although not necessarily easily - for example, tickets to the first NCAA men's game in PSU history were still available on game day.
4. The building, as most new buildings do, will probably fill itself in the first year, but what happens after that?

I'll save more for a full post I haven't written yet at some undetermined future date, since I'm running long for a Three Stars entry. But I sincerely hope that those in charge, as well as the highly-paid consultants who undoubtedly assisted on this, haven't underestimated the amount of market building that remains to be done.

Oh, and the women? $50 for a season ticket, $5 per game for anywhere in the main seating bowl, which will be general admission. That was easy. I'm actually glad that they'll be charging for women's games starting next year, because it reinforces the idea that it's something of value.

Further information about suites, loges, etc. is available at the link - if you're interested, you're rich enough to dig that up yourself. Or pay someone to do it, your choice. You can pay me, I'd do it for like $10 and a box of Lemonheads.

Best of the Rest

AGU 2012 Beginning: “Chasing Ice” and Climate Change
(Mass Media Musings)

Last week, former Lady Icer Abbey Dufoe attended the American Geophysical Union's (AGU) fall meeting in San Francisco, mingling with the likes of James Cameron and presenting her iBook Controversies in the Hydrosphere. Yeah, no big deal.

While a nasty shoulder injury suffered last season kept her from playing on this year's ACHA team as a senior, it's pretty safe to say she has a bright future in environmental communication and is presently seeking a graduate program that will allow her to continue on that path. I have no problem admitting that she's already environmentally communicated to me - I bought and now use reusable grocery bags after reading her thoughts on the disposable version.

Anyway, make sure you're feeling okay about your life first, then check out Dufoe's blog posts about her experience at the meeting, starting with the link above, and continuing with...

AGU 2012 Day 1: Scientific Literacy, Communication and Climate Change
AGU 2012 Day 2: Presentation Day!
AGU Day 3: Favorite Aspects of the Conference
AGU Day 4: What I Learned
AGU Day 5: Sustainable San Francisco

NCAA Men's Hockey Frozen Four
(Ticketmaster)

The men's Frozen Four is in Pittsburgh this year, and tickets are now on sale. Go forth and make sure Penn State is represented beyond the annual display of every NCAA Division I jersey.

In Rhodes finalist Rocha, Army has ‘amazing young man’
(USCHO)

In case you forgot, Army senior defenseman Cheyne Rocha is the son of Larry Rocha, a former Icers assistant who led the team during its successful 1984 nationals run, and Candace Finn-Rocha, a former PSU lacrosse player and one of the best athletes in school history. A high bar, to be sure, but Cheyne certainly doesn't look like he's about to become the family loser.



#8 Conor Garland first qmjhl goal vs Victoriaville
(YouTube)

Yeah, so Conor Garland scored in his first QMJHL game on Friday after ditching Muskegon and Penn State. He's still an idiot, according to former recruiting classmate A.J. Greer.

Atlantic Hockey Picks Dec. 7-12
(USCHO)

The Nittany Lions (I liked “Icers” better)...

I like the cut of your jib, guy. Let's go Icers.

Preliminary World Juniors Roster Named
(usahockey.com)

Penn State, realistically, is still a couple years away from getting representation in the world's most prestigious junior tournament, but Miami forwards Riley Barber and Sean Kuraly (neither of whom suck) were named to Team USA's preliminary roster last week. Why does that matter? Because the tournament runs December 26th through January 5th, so both would miss the Three Rivers Classic if they pass the final cut.

Union defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere, who scored the game-winning goal in Penn State's November 25th trip to Schenectady, is also on the preliminary roster.

Big Ten added Rutgers, Maryland in part to ensure Penn State remains in league
(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

While it needs to be said that Barry Alvarez has a penchant for talking out of his ass (see Johnson, Mark: Penn State coaching search and), this still has to be considered a solid ego boost for the Penn State community.



PSU Hockey 1972
(YouTube)

Okay, the quality is non-existent, I get that. Still, this video does give at least a sense of what the original Ice Pavilion was like in the earliest days of Icers history.

UPDATED: 2015 Recruit Garland Headed to QMJHL

UPDATE 3:38 P.M.: The Moncton Wildcats have confirmed that now-former Penn State recruit Conor Garland will be joining their team. Here's the segment of their release that doesn't duplicate information:

The Moncton Wildcats have received a commitment from 1996 born and the Cats 6th round draft pick in 2012 Conor Garland. He is anticipated to suit up for his first QMJHL game on Friday versus Victoriaville. Garland has been playing with the Muskegon Lumberjack in the USHL as a 16 year old where he had 3 points in 6 games.

“Conor is an offensively gifted young player. I had the opportunity to coach him in a tournament in Moncton this summer. He has great hockey sense and a nose for the net.” described Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations Danny Flynn. “Keep in mind that he is just 16 years old but he has the potential to develop into a very good offensive player for the Wildcats down the road.”

The remainder of the post is what originally went up early this morning.

---

According to U.S. Hockey Report (USHR), star 2015 recruit Conor Garland has left his USHL team and will likely sign with the QMJHL's Moncton Wildcats, the team that selected him in the sixth round of the major junior league's entry draft in July.

Here's what USHR disclosed (behind a pay wall, but the copy/paste is short enough that I don't think I'm violating ethical standards):

5’6”, 150 lb. forward Conor Garland, a Penn State recruit for fall ’15, has left Muskegon (USHL). Look for him to sign with the Moncton Wildcats (QMJHL).

A 3/11/96 birthdate, Garland had a 1-2-3 line in six USHL games this season. A Scituate, Mass. native, he went out west and put up 116 points in 52 games with Shattuck’s Bantam Team in ’10-11, then returned home to play for the Junior Bruins Empire Team last year, where he scored 94 points in 40 games. This season, in going out to the USHL, he skipped a necessary step – he should probably be playing in the EJHL right now. Instead, with Moncton, he’ll be playing on his fourth team in three years – and turning down a college scholarship.

The news seems to be confirmed by the Lumberjacks' website, which has removed Garland from its roster.

Garland had just committed in August, choosing Penn State over (according to him) every program in Hockey East as well as a number of ECAC schools, after being floored by a visit to campus.

“Campus is pretty unbelievable, seeing Beaver Stadium when we were pulling out of the airport was pretty crazy,” said Garland. “They took us around campus and saw the basketball center, all the different facilities they have for sports, and then obviously the hockey rink is going to be state of the art.

“It definitely felt good, and not to commit to just and Division I school, but a school like Penn State, it felt awesome because that place is going to be unreal.”

The diminutive forward, as USHR mentioned, was attempting to play in the USHL as a 16-year-old, and struggled to crack the lineup consistently, dressing for just six of the Jacks' 21 games so far. He put up gaudy numbers at his previous stops, thanks largely to a willingness to work the high-traffic areas despite his size. That said, while his loss is certainly a blow to what was (and still is) shaping up as a strong recruiting class, it shouldn't prove devastating given the overall talent of the next few incoming groups and the amount of time remaining to pursue alternatives.

Unofficially, and if USHR's prediction plays out, Garland will become the second Penn State commit to wind up in the CHL, following defenseman Thomas Welsh, who signed with the OHL's Mississauga Steelheads last week after decommitting in September. It could be argued that Guy Gadowsky and his staff addressed Welsh's departure by bringing in Patrick Koudys, an NHL-drafted player with previous Division I experience at RPI, including an NCAA Tournament trip - a trade I'm more than happy to make. Hopefully this news is met with a similarly productive response.

Three Stars: October 29-November 4

3. McAdam selected for prestigious ice hockey tournament in Nova Scotia
(The Morning Call)

Do I talk too much about 2013 commit Eamon McAdam relative to other recruits? If I do, it's not deliberate - it's because he keeps doing great things and receiving honors like his World Junior A Challenge invite. Here's a nice feature on the big goalie ahead of the WJAC, which officially gets underway today after Team USA lost in a shootout to Canada West in exhibition action on Saturday. The first opponent? Former commit Thomas Welsh and Canada East. U-S-A! U-S-A!

2. Like Fathers, Like Sons: Nate Jensen and Tommy Olczyk follow in their fathers footsteps
(USA Hockey Magazine)

I think my favorite part of this is how dated the photo of Olczyk and Jensen in front of the construction site looks already.

1. Vermont vs Penn State Ice Hockey
(ComcastTIX)

Tickets are on sale for the Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff. It would be nice if the game sold well so that they invite PSU back, because Philly's an unreal city, and I'd be okay with going to see Penn State play there every year. So buy tickets.

Just because there's no way I'm stepping on the Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia land mine, Pittsburgh's a great city too. But I already know PSU will be there every year, thanks to the Three Rivers Classic.

Best of the Rest

Among Icers legend Curtiss Patrick's six professional stops: the UK's Basingstoke Bison.

Iconic NHL Families: The Patricks
(Japers' Rink)

Last week, the SBNation network wrote a whole bunch of sponsored posts on...well, iconic NHL families. The Patricks, of course, are the family that touches on Penn State hockey, although former Icers C.J., Ryan and Curtiss Patrick don't get a mention.

5 Questions with Jill Holdcroft
(statecollege.com)

Speaking of Icers family connections, here's an interview with Jill Holdcroft. The local product is a tenacious defender as a forward, and she was rewarded for that with a pair of unassisted goals directly resulting from takeaways over the past weekend.

INCH Power Rankings: Great 58+1
(inchwriters.com)

Penn State is 57th, ahead of only Sacred Heart and Alabama-Huntsville. However, the rankings were assembled "a few weeks ago," and the Nittany Lions would almost certainly be higher now, given DI wins over AIC, RIT, Army and Sacred Heart. My honest assessment would be somewhere between 40 and 50 (I think you can argue towards either end of that range). Great by established program standards? Not really. But better than roughly 20 percent of DI, which at this point, is fantastic.

All your goals are belong to Yox.

CHA Award Monthly Winners for October
(College Hockey America)

It's hard to have too much of a beef with the fact that nominees Shannon Yoxheimer (for both Player and Rookie of the Month) and Nicole Paniccia (for Goaltender of the Month) didn't win, but Yox had six of 16 Penn State goals this season at the time the awards were given out. Rookie award winner Emily Janiga scored nine times to lead Mercyhurst in that category, but the Lakers as a team had 47. There's really very little question in my mind that Yox is more important to her team's offense.

And yes, I'm going to keep calling her Yox until a) it catches on or b) she tells me to stop.

Eagles' Brady Shaw Commits to Bentley University
(Island Sports News)

BCHLer Brady Shaw had been a Penn State target but, like the headline says, will be going to Bentley instead.

Joe Battista: You Can't Always Get What You Want
(statecollege.com)

I'm not sure what this "football" is that Joe Battista keeps going on about, but regardless, funny Icers story incoming.

---

In 1994 we were coming off a devastating loss in the national title game in what we commonly refer to in Icer history as the “33 and the wrong one” season. We entered the national championship game undefeated at 33-0, but our coronation never occurred as we got upset in the finals, 2-1. Devastating doesn’t begin to describe the emotions in that dressing room after the game. We had nine amazing seniors who deserved better and it was our “destiny” to be undefeated national champions. But it didn’t happen. It didn’t go the way we planned.

So as we prepared for Nationals for the 1994 season, we put together one of the best motivational videos I have ever seen set to the fiery Queen hit, “I Want It All.” It was a favorite video for years of the kids at hockey camp, and it would have had the perfect ending except for one thing: We didn’t win. In fact, in my 19 years as head coach, it was our worst finish at the national tournament. We came in sixth place.

At that year’s banquet, we played the “I Want It All” motivational tape for the parents and boosters who all thought it was amazing. In a feeble attempt at post-loss humor, we played our Nationals highlight tape set to the Rolling Stones hit song, “You Can't Always Get What You Want.”

---

Philly won't host Division 3 ice hockey final
(Broad Street Hockey)

The video below has swearing, just so everyone knows before playing it, but it's still my reaction. IDIOTS! SAVAGES! IDIOTS!



NCAA gives 2014 men’s regionals to Worcester, Bridgeport, St. Paul, Cincinnati
(USCHO)

Leading up to that Philly Frozen Four, the NCAA tournament will be played in the cities mentioned in the headline. If you're new to this, the same sites get the regionals almost literally every single year. Cincinnati's not in that club, however, so their selection has received the most attention of the four.

Is this pertinent to Penn State in any way? Here's hoping.

Conor Garland
(sportsnet.ca)

Know what freaks me out? When our recruits have player pages identifying them as members of the major junior QMJHL's Moncton Wildcats. As of right now everything's okay - he's still a member of the USHL's Muskegon Lumberjacks and still committed to Penn State - but it's a long way until 2015. Garland was a sixth-round pick of the Wildcats back in June, which at least partly explains this page's existence.

Club hockey has D-I dedication, not D-I funds
(The Daily Illini)

If I didn't despise Illinois, dating all the way back to the time an obese Illini hockey mom tried to fight me at a game, I'd feel bad for them. I do though, so I don't. Good luck with the Jimmy John's pipe dream.

PS. Remember when people used to write articles like this about us at roughly six-month intervals? Minus the university support issue, of course.

Who Should Get The Next B1G Hockey Invite?
(B1G Ice Hockey)

And while we're on that, here's a nice rundown of the statuses of the six non-hockey Big Ten schools. I've said it before, but I really believe that Illinois, Nebraska and Indiana will be the next three in. But including Illinois might be a little generous - the simple reality is that having a good ACHA program can help, but you're still going to need a facility and/or a giant check at some point. PSU's ACHA success helped get those things, but I think most realize how extremely fortunate we are that it worked out like that. Unless your ACHA program can inspire the necessary donations and university support, being a good D1 and even winning Murdoch Cups doesn't really matter all that much in terms of jumping to the NCAA.

Really, the odds-on favorites should be the schools either building or planning new basketball arenas with ice capabilities (why Nebraska and Indiana are two of my top three). Even that's hardly a guarantee. The Jordan Center was supposed to include an ice plant, but it was cut due to overruns. And you still need to cover the actual expenses of the program(s), easier said than done in today's climate.

CHLPA: Curtains?
(The Pipeline Show)

TPS' Guy Flaming has been all over the bizarre CHLPA saga from the beginning, so it's worth reading this post as well as the others he's made on the topic. He's been widely praised - with good reason - for keeping an open mind without losing a healthy degree of skepticism.

The essentials are that three months ago, a "union" formed, purportedly to represent major junior hockey players, with former NHL enforcer Georges Laraque as executive director. Following a stretch of the association lingering in the background, people wondering who was behind the effort and some suspicious behavior like ducking interview requests, the whole thing blew up on Halloween when it turned out that fraud convict Randy Gumbley had been dressed as CHLPA spokesperson Derek Clarke for a while. Or something like that. Amidst that and some other general weirdness, Laraque resigned, the union's legal representation pulled out, and the whole thing is on life support.

Of interest though, the CHLPA did have big plans with respect to NCAA hockey. Much of its work since its August founding was aimed at addressing the educational concerns of players, and one of the primary thrusts in that department was an attempt to get the NCAA to reclassify major junior hockey as amateur, which of course would mean that CHL players would retain college eligibility. Would it have worked? Probably not, but we'll likely never know.

Three Stars: August 20-26

3. Change in Penn State Athletics… Hockey Can Be Our Edge in Slippery Conditions
(lions-pride.com)

Can our new men’s and women’s Ice Hockey teams help our Penn State athletic community regain its edge? I think so.

Josh Hand wrote this - it's gotta be true!

The men's assistant, and apologies for missing this until now, is providing hockey updates on the sports blog maintained by my favorite PSU clothing store. This was actually the first of his two posts so far. Here's the second, expressing his thoughts on his decision to relocate to State College a couple years ago.

2. @nseravalli_12
(Twitter)

The always-quotable Nick Seravalli tweeted this last Wednesday evening:

I’d give my left nut, chewing and actually go to all my classes if I could go back for one more year with the boys.

Heartbreaking coming from anyone, but especially in his case, as he didn't get a true senior season thanks to his chronic groin issues that flared up throughout his career.

Ten years from now, I might not remember that. What I will remember is the way he stepped up to become one of the Icers' best forwards down the stretch of the 2010-2011 season, playing some vital shifts to help make sure Penn State didn't miss the ACHA National Championship Tournament for what would have been the only time ever.

1. Two 2015 prospects on board
(Lions247)

Recent commits A.J. Greer and Conor Garland get the Andrew Dzurita treatment. Want a wow moment from the interviews? You got it. Apparently Garland (pictured above)...

...had offers from every school in Hockey East in addition to a number of ECAC schools, said Penn State was about the 15th different campus he visited, standing out from the rest.

So Boston College, Boston University, Maine and New Hampshire, among many others. You may have heard of these programs. And he chose Penn State.

Anyone still doubt that we're going to be getting after this thing for seriously within a few years?

Best of the Rest

@KPegula
(Twitter)

The Namesake's daughter tweeted the above photo last Wednesday. My only comment: she needed a ticket? Really? Thought the whole $88 million (at the time) thing would get the family comped on the $6.50 tickets.

2011-12 ACHA Community Service Awards Announced
(achahockey.org)

Congratulations to Penn State Altoona on winning the ACHA's Community Service Award at the D3 level for last season!

Men’s Division III title game planned to coincide with Philadelphia Frozen Four in 2014
(USCHO)

Everyone in agreement that playing the DIII championship on the off day* between the Frozen Four semifinals and final is an amazing idea? Good. Moving on...

* I'll open myself up to the scorn of the college hockey world at this point and admit that I don't really care about the Hobey Baker Award** or anything else that presently happens on that Friday. It's an off day in my book.

** I'll probably care when a Penn Stater wins it. Hey, we're all hypocrites at times.

Men's Ice Hockey Announces Four Additions to Class of 2016
(aicyellowjackets.com)

Here's the class of incoming freshmen for the Nittany Lions' first-ever opponent on the men's side. It's a small group of four, but it matches the number of departing seniors from last year's young AIC team.

The CHL and the CHLPA: Links, links, comments, and more links
(Over The Boards)

The latest twist in what's been a pretty interesting offseason for the major junior leagues is that CHL players have formed a union. Before you begin imagining (and that is the correct word at this point) this development's impact on the CHL-NCAA war - our primary concern, after all - make sure you get informed via OTB's excellent primer.

Leagues of Their Own: Josh Hauge
(Over The Boards)

The junior coach of freshman forward Kenny Brooks and possibly of 2014 defense commit Kevin Kerr (who was the Storm's first pick in May's USHL Futures Draft) at some point is interviewed here. Brooks' father, by the way, owns the Tri-City Storm team Hauge coaches.

By the way, have I given OTB an appropriate plug yet? I can't remember and am too lazy to check the archives, but two links in a row tells the story there, I suppose. The site's Twitter is also must-follow material.

Yost Arena Tour
(Big Man With Camera)

Here's a fantastic set of photos to update the progress of Yost's $14 million renovation. If this place isn't on your must-attend list for 2013-2014 when the Nittany Lions finally play at Michigan, there's something wrong with you.

MichiganHockey.net posted renderings of the completed project back in January, if you're interested in seeing where this is going. Looks incurably sick, particularly with all the natural lighting.

2012-13 Schedule Breakdown
(ohiobobcatshockey.com)

Ohio U. (I hear they looooove when you call them that) sees their games at the Ice Pavilion this year as a big deal.

Sun Devils Are B.C. Bound!
(sundevilhockey.com)

PSU's other two ACHA opponents (Arizona State and Oklahoma) will both head to the great northwest for a holiday tournament with the CIS' University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser, which has won the non-varsity BCIHL in three of the six years it has existed. SFU, of course, is in the process of becoming the first Canadian member of the NCAA (which has nothing to do with hockey at the present time).

Johnstown begins new hockey era
(Altoona Mirror)

The NAHL's newest entry is presently in the middle of its training camp (which runs through Friday) ahead of its first-ever regular season game on September 8th at Port Huron. These are, indeed, exciting times for Central PA hockey on many different levels.

While it is fairly light on substance, this article does include quotes from Tomahawks part-owners Jack Ham and Shane Conlan. Those two, of course, are better known as legendary Penn State linebackers.

@Billy_Downey
(Twitter)

Oh hey, what up student section?

Scoring Dynamo Garland Commits For 2015

Guy Gadowsky gained his first verbal commitment since May, and therefore his first since the announcement of Penn State's NCAA sanctions, Monday night in the form of Muskegon Lumberjacks forward Conor Garland. Garland will join Alec Marsh and Chase Berger in the entering class of 2015.

Conor Garland

Forward
Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL)
5'6", 146 pounds
Scituate, MA
DOB 3/11/1996

EliteProspects.com

Season   Team                   Lge    GP    G    A  Pts  PIM
-------------------------------------------------------------
2010-11  Shattuck-St. Mary's    Bntm   52   65   51  116   28
2011-12  Boston Jr. Bruins      EmJHL  40   42   52   94   53

Garland, who immediately ranks as one of PSU's biggest recruiting scores, completed a highly-successful year with the Boston Jr. Bruins organization in 2011-2012. He crushed the Empire League for 42 goals and 94 points in just 40 games as a 15-year-old, good for the third-highest scoring total in the circuit. Ordinarily, this would be the part of the post where I pick out the player's best games, but with that stat line, that's a little difficult. Instead, I'll just say this: He was held off the scoresheet four times all year. He had four points or more eight times, including a 14 point/three game stretch from January 28th through February 3rd.

Just to provide a little context for those numbers, the team was captained by Jack Eichel, another 1996, who finished immediately behind Garland in the EmJHL scoring race. Eichel committed to perennial powerhouse Boston University in the spring and will skate for the U.S. National Team Development Program U17 team this year.

The Jr. Bruins as a whole were equally stout (as you might imagine with players like Garland and Eichel leading the way), delivering a 34-4-1-1 regular season. But despite the top seed in the league playoffs and Garland's nine points in five games, the team fell just shy of the championship.

Not surprisingly on the back of that season, he's been drafted twice this year. In May, Muskegon picked Garland in the third round (40th overall) of the USHL Futures Draft, for 1996 birth year players. Last month, he was selected in the sixth round (104th overall) of the QMJHL draft by the Moncton Wildcats. Fortunately, it's the first of those two drafts that has proven more significant right now, as Garland will enter Muskegon's training camp on the team's affiliate list.

While size is not among Garland's many positive attributes, the consensus seems to be that he plays bigger than his measurements, providing more of a net-front presence than many larger players.

"Conor is a shifty, smart, heady player who can score in bunches," Lumberjacks assistant coach Steve Palmer said. "When he gets the puck around the net, it's going in."

Garland has committed heavily to developing that part of his game.

"I've always worked on [my finishing ability] since I was younger," said Garland, who skated with and against players up to five years his elder in the EmJHL. "I knew it was going to be a step up from what I was used to so I made sure I was going to be ready for it."

In the past, he's also been described as a playmaker, a hard worker, a good skater and someone who makes good decisions in all three zones. I'm struggling to figure out which aspects of playing hockey haven't been covered.

Despite his eye-popping numbers, 2011-2012 was not really a "breakout season" - Garland has been extremely highly regarded for quite some time. He attended the USA Hockey Select 15 Player Development Camp last summer and his 11 points there ranked third among all campers. Before transferring back home to Scituate High School this past year, he played in the legendary Shattuck-St. Mary's program where he led their Bantam A team in scoring in 2010-2011 with 116 points in 52 games. Still, he felt that returning to the east coast would help his visibility to colleges.

Scoring by the bucketful wherever you're playing tends to do that as well. Regardless, achievement unlocked.

By the way, one thing I automatically do while preparing these posts is search YouTube. In this case, that led to one of the more entertaining videos I've seen in a while, involving Garland and a clutch title-winning snipe. Gotta love the work invested in that setup too - note the Penn State ad on the boards.